Minnesota Lynx forward Napheesa Collier brings do-everything game to WNBA title contenders

For Minnesota Lynx forward Napheesa Collier, it felt like a turning of the page. 

Since entering the WNBA as a rookie in 2019, Collier has watched as the organization has celebrated the completion of its most successful era in franchise history. It was an era that brought the Lynx four WNBA championships in seven seasons from 2011-17 and featured several basketball legends and Hall of Fame talents who would inspire a generation of future WNBA players.

In 2019, Collier saw the team retire the jersey of Lindsay Whalen. Seimone Augustus and Rebekkah Brunson had their jerseys retired in 2022. In 2023, it was Sylvia Fowles’ turn.

On Aug. 24, the Lynx retired the jersey of Maya Moore, as those former players watched.

Since being named the 2019 Rookie of the Year, Collier has evolved from the future face of the Lynx to the team’s franchise player. She’s observed and learned from the dynastic era that established a culture of winning in Minnesota and has been handed the baton to continue it.

This season the Lynx (30-10) are doing just that. Behind an MVP-level season from Collier, who has joined the WNBA’s elite class of performers, Minnesota is a title contender. As the Lynx prepare for their opening-round playoff matchup as the No. 2 seed against the No. 7 seed Phoenix Mercury, they’ll be led by their “humble superstar” in Collier, who has focused on creating a new winning chapter in the franchise’s story.

“As we retired Maya’s [jersey], I think that was the last of that generation and that era, and so it feels like we’re creating our own destiny now – and hopefully following in their footsteps with the championships,” Collier said. “It definitely feels like that’s a possibility for us this year.” 

Before her jersey was retired Aug. 24, Moore joined the Lynx’s broadcast booth in the second quarter of the night’s contest between Minnesota and the Indiana Fever. When asked about what Collier has done, Moore raved about Collier’s unselfish nature, her desire to win and how she has empowered her teammates.

“I love the bounce in her step. She’s just solid. Consistent,” Moore said. “She just knows who she is and the way she plays.”

It’s taken Collier a moment to figure out who she is as a pro in the WNBA. As she’s matured as a player, she’s learned more about herself. With the talent level so high in the league, she was forced to find where she could thrive at the WNBA level as what worked for her in college had changed at the next level.

“Through that, just finding where I’m best at, where I excel, where my value lies on the team and whatever I can do to make it successful,” Collier said. “Through years of doing that, I’ve found my space, I think.”

That space, for Collier, has been playing at an MVP level as a two-way jack-of-all-trades for Minnesota. Collier ended the regular season averaging 20.4 points (tied for fourth in the WNBA), 9.7 rebounds (third), 3.4 assists and 1.9 steals (second). It’s a level Collier said she always knew she was capable of, and she’s happy to see it come to fruition.

“I think the four position in this league is one of the best. To be considered at the MVP conversation at that level – it’s unbelievable,” Lynx guard Kayla McBride said. “I think this year she is just playing with a little bit more tenacity and that expectation that she has of herself, that quiet confidence. It’s always impressive to me how she handles it and carries it and she has taken it to another level this year, for sure.”

Collier has posted career highs in every major statistical category this season. Last offseason, Collier focused on expanding her game, emphasizing the midrange and improving her efficiency from 3-point range. Previously, Collier’s midrange volume hadn’t exceeded 11.8% of her overall two-point shot attempts. This year it’s 17.6%.

“I’m still working on the other one,” Collier joked.

Collier’s teammates laud her mentality and work ethic, her consistency and efficiency. Brunson likes Collier’s commitment to growth.

“Phee is someone who I think is a superstar in this league, but is so willing to be coached. She’s become a better defender. She’s become a better perimeter shooter,” said Brunson, an assistant coach with the Lynx since 2020. “She knows she has her go-to moves, but she’s continuing to listen to us on the wrinkles that she needs to make, the counters that she needs to have. She’s ever evolving.”

Another strength of Collier’s is her stamina and durability. She never really comes off the floor for the Lynx – it’s been that way since she came into the league and averaged 33.3 minutes as a rookie. Collier travels an average of 2.58 miles, according to Second Spectrum, the most of any player this season (minimum 15 games played).

“She’s so good you never want to take her out of the game,” Brunson said. “In the offseason she continues to try and work on her body, her physicality, making sure that she’s stronger and durable. It’s so important. No matter how good you are, if you can’t stay on the court, if you can’t be available for your team, it doesn’t matter. She’s someone you know you can count on. I think that’s key to this team’s success for sure.”

“When you have a team like that – who really doesn’t care about individual accolades and only cares about the team and winning – first of all, it’s really hard to find in the WNBA and second of all, I think it’s definitely a recipe for greatness.”

— Napheesa Collier

Collier’s miles logged isn’t just an indication of her minutes, but her activity during possessions. On offense she averages about 1.42 miles traveled per game, the second-most of anyone in the league only trailing Caitlin Clark (1.46, min. 15 games played this season).

“The hardest people for me to guard are the ones that are moving a lot,” Collier said. “I think just trying to be as active as possible is really hard for the defense to stay with you on that and know what you’re doing. It’s definitely something I try to do.”

Collier can often touch every level of the floor on a single possession and be involved in multiple actions as the Lynx navigate to get their best look. Of the four action types that Second Spectrum tracks (handoffs, isolation, pick and post up), Collier and New York Liberty forward Breanna Stewart are the only players in the league to have 70-plus plays doing all four actions. Lynx coach Cheryl Reeve describes Collier’s brand of offense as “opportunistic.” Sometimes that’s Collier’s ability to exploit a defense that’s out of position, other times it’s flying in from the perimeter to grab an offensive rebound and finishing the second chance point.

In a superteam era of the WNBA, where collecting the game’s megastars has been a title-grabbing strategy for multiple franchises from the New York Liberty in the east to the Seattle Storm and Phoenix Mercury in the west, the Lynx view themselves as the other.

“When you beat a team like New York, that’s a super-team, and we are not a super-team, we’re a collective,” Reeve said after the Lynx defeated the Liberty on Sept. 15. Minnesota finished 2-1 against New York in the regular season, not including its Commissioner’s Cup championship win over the Liberty in June. “They believe in each other and they believe in our collective. There’s more than one way to be successful.”

While the team doesn’t have multiple Olympians or All-WNBA performers on paper, it’s not without star talent. The key is in the team’s assembly.

“It’s all about what we can do as a team to win,” Collier said. “When you have a team like that – who really doesn’t care about individual accolades and only cares about the team and winning – first of all, it’s really hard to find in the WNBA and second of all, I think it’s definitely a recipe for greatness.”

The Lynx possess one of the top defenses in the league. They rank second in defensive rating and steals and first in opponent field goal percentage (41%). The defense is anchored by Collier, a contender to win this year’s Defensive Player of the Year award. Collier’s defensive impact comes in her ability to alter opponents’ shots. According to Second Spectrum, she is holding her opponents to just 36.2% shooting from the field as the closest defender this season, the lowest in the league (out of 114 players who have had 100 field goal attempts against them as the closest defender). Collier ranks third in the league in steals per game and fourth in defensive rebounding (7.5 per game).

“Defensively, being able to take on that challenge against the great post players in our league – whatever we ask her to do, she rises to the challenge,” McBride said. “I think this year she is just playing with a little bit more tenacity and that expectation that she has of herself.”

Minnesota’s strength on offense comes from balance. The Lynx are tied for second in field goal percentage and are the top 3-point shooting team in the WNBA. They have four players in the top 10 of the league in 3-point field goal percentage, with forward Bridget Carleton and McBride leading the league among players with more than 190 attempts. Courtney Williams is a premier midrange threat and spearheads the team that leads the league in assists.

“I know a lot of times teams are focusing on me. If I have the ball, it opens it up for someone else,” Collier said. “I can go in the post and do something or pass it out to the other side. We have so many threats on our team, you can’t guard all of us.”

As Minnesota chases its first championship since 2017, the final title won by the previous Lynx dynasty, Brunson said the message to Collier has been clear: No matter who you play with, you have to create your own legacy. 

“I don’t think Phee thinks about how she fits with what we’ve done. She has her own goals and things she wants to accomplish with this team. I think the most important thing for her is that she understands that,” Brunson said. “Yeah there is some pride for wearing a Lynx uniform, but for being in this moment and knowing what you want to carve out for you and your teammates, I think she has a great head on her shoulders.”

Collier has emphasized growth as a locker room leader every year. She borrows from what she learned from the franchise’s best, whom she calls the best leaders she’s ever had. She has adopted the winning qualities that she observed when she played alongside Augustus and Fowles and has since tried to make it her own. She’s grateful to be coached by Brunson, a boundless resource who can show her what it takes to win the big one.

With Collier now out in front, she hopes this Lynx team can gain that experience firsthand. 

“We have the talent to do it,” Collier said. “It just feels like, hopefully, we are repeating history.”