Tag: Napheesa Collier

Napheesa Collier jokingly said she wants to ‘end’ Diana Taurasi’s career

Napheesa Collier from the top rope.

Napheesa Collier made a funny Diana Taurasi retirement joke Sunday after the Lynx outlasted the Mercury in a playoff thriller.

I hope you were watching Game 1 of the Mercury-Lynx playoff matchup. IT WAS GOOD. Minnesota had a 23-point lead before the Phoenix came STORMING back. Then, a lifetime of buckets was traded until Minnesota’s Bridget Carleton slammed the door with a gritty fadeaway 3-point bucket. It was everything you hoped playoff basketball would be.

So many people were HOOPING, including 42-year-old Diana Taurasi, who dropped 21 points on 50 percent shooting. WHEW. But, it seems that was too much for Phee Collier because she jokingly said during a Lynx postgame presser that she hopes Minnesota could send Taurasi into retirement. This is what Collier shared with the media:

“It seems like it’s her retirement tour. I don’t know. She’s been pretty quiet about it. But, she’s obviously, like I said, a UConn great, a league GOAT.”

“So, I feel lucky to have been able to play with her on Team USA and against her, and hopefully, we can end her career on Wednesday.”

However, Phee later clarified that she didn’t want any smoke with DT or the Mercury. She just wants to win.

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Paige Bueckers has a sweet new NIL deal with Breanna Stewart and Napheesa Collier’s Unrivaled basketball league

Paige Bueckers is now Unrivaled. See what we did there?

UConn guard Paige Bueckers has a dope new NIL deal with Breanna Stewart and Napheesa Collier’s Unrivaled basketball league.

Paige has been having one heck of an offseason. She attended the WNBA Draft to support her former teammates, has been to multiple WNBA games and even made an appearance during WNBA All-Star weekend. In other words, her WNBA ties are already DEEP. So, it’s not entirely shocking that Paige has a fantastic new NIL deal with a new basketball league, Unrivaled, created by WNBA stars Breanna Stewart and Napheesa Collier.

Per Shams Charania of The Athletic, Bueckers is expected to join the league after her first WNBA season. (Assuming she declares for the WNBA Draft in 2025 and is drafted, she won’t suit up for Unrivaled until 2026.) Her new deal also makes her the first college athlete to receive ownership equity in a league.

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Minnesota Lynx win their first ever Commissioner’s Cup championship

The Lynx defeated the Liberty, 94-89, to claim the title as champions of the 2024 WNBA Commissioner’s Cup.

The Minnesota Lynx defeated the New York Liberty, 94-89, to claim the title of 2024 WNBA Commissioner’s Cup champions. The Lynx won the $500,000 prize pool and raised $27,000 for their selected non-profit organization.

Napheesa Collier and Bridget Carleton each scored over 20 points a piece to defeat the reigning champion, Liberty. Collier had six rebounds and three assists along with her 21 points and won the game’s MVP award.

“It’s really good,” Collier said. ” I always want to win championships. This is a championship we won, but there’s still work to be done. A lot of games to be played. We want to build on this. We don’t want to peak here. This is amazing. At the end of the day, we want to achieve bigger things than this at the end of the season.”

The Liberty’s Breanna Stewart scored 24 points and Sabrina Ionescu added 23, but it was not enough to overcome the 20 turnovers they had and the generally lackluster performance of the team as a whole.

“I think that they executed better than us and that’s it, both ends of the floor,” Stewart said. “We weren’t able to get anything we wanted. Twenty-one turnovers are never going to win the game.”

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Napheesa Collier rattled off the coldest 10 words after the Lynx won the WNBA Commissioner’s-Cup

Put some respect on the Minnesota Lynx. They are the best team in the WNBA.

Napheesa Collier and the Minnesota Lynx have officially put the WNBA on notice.

Minnesota is the 2024 WNBA Commissioner’s Cup champion, and if you’ve been paying attention, its victory isn’t all that surprising. We’ve been trying to tell you in our WNBA power rankings that the Lynx are the best team in the WNBA, but I don’t think enough people are paying attention.

Per the WNBA’s site, the Lynx have the best defense (90.6 rating) and lead the league in steals and blocks per game. On the offensive side, Minnesota is ranked second in field goal percentage (45.3%), leads the WNBA in 3-point shooting percentage (39.8%), and also leads the league in assists.

With stats like that, it’s not hard to imagine why Napheesa Collier said,  “We’re here. I mean, what else is there to say?” after the Lynx walked away Tuesday with a Commissioner’s Cup victory over the New York Liberty.

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WNBA roundtable: 6 stars (including Aliyah Boston!) share their most-embarrassing mid-game moments and more

We asked some WNBA stars the deeper questions, like things they probably don’t want many to know.

All offseason long, For The Win has been catching up with WNBA stars as they do things that are important to them, like promoting financial education for players or joining other basketball leagues to keep their skills fresh.

For the Win asked several players various questions to help fans get to know them a little better. We decided to use the time to learn more about what makes them tick – and dish on some less serious moments in the W.

Some athletes were also made available through the WNBA’s Player Marketing Agreement (PMA) program, which was designed to create a holistic player experience and additional opportunities for players to earn income throughout the year. The program also helps players build their personal brands while connecting them to league partners through tentpole events and culturally relevant spaces.

“It was part of our overall marketing strategy,” Head of League Operatios Bethany Donaphin explained. “We thought, ‘How can we highlight player stories and elevate players across the league in a multifaceted way?’ Being able to have a platform that allows us to support players while they support the growth of the league was important.”

Aliyah Boston, Rhyne Howard, Jewell Loyd, Napheesa Collier, Sydney Colson all got to share their stories with For The Win recently. Here’s what they had to say about the growth of the WNBA, their personal brands and some of their more unfortunate moments on the court.

 

These answers have been condensed and edited for clarity.

Napheesa Collier opens up about finding new purpose in her motherhood

WNBA star Napheesa Collier’s pregnancy changed her game, redefining the definition of a parent athlete.

Napheesa Collier is widely respected in WNBA circles for her tenacity, strength and otherworldly prowess on the basketball court. Collier is a competitor who will do whatever it takes to help the Minnesota Lynx succeed, but it’s not just her love for the game that propels her. It’s now deeper than that.

Collier is a mom who proudly gushed over her little girl, Mila.

“I see her learning something new, and to have her in my life, I feel like it gives me purpose,” she told For The Win in a recent interview while promoting her partnership with U.S. Bank, the WNBA’s official bank partner. Collier is on a mission to make financial education resources readily available for the league’s athletes, and it’s particularly important to her as she builds an off-the-court legacy.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CwTA0eNR8VI/?igshid=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==

“Learning about what to do with your finances and how to create generational wealth, even just the basics, is important. I feel like [U.S. Bank] is a changemaker for a reason because they’re not just giving us money and saying, ‘We’re partnering with the [WNBA].’ They’re trying to help us and make a change.”

Collier gave birth to Mila in 2021 and amazingly returned to the court in 2022 to help with the Lynx’s playoff push. However, it’s the 2023 season that makes her genuinely phenomenal. Not only was Collier arguably better on the court, but her accolades proved it. She was a WNBA All-Star and earned WNBA All-First Team and WNBA All-Defensive Second Team honors.  

That kind of growth doesn’t just happen. Yet, for Collier, it made perfect sense in a season of her life that perhaps challenged her in ways she hadn’t been before.

“I think what I learned about myself is that this is the hardest job I’ve ever had, but it’s so rewarding,” she said. “It’s the most amazing job in the world. I feel like I have a purpose in my family and my daughter. I feel like a different person than I was before I had her.”

Perhaps the most underrated part of Collier’s journey is that she doesn’t usually stop to give herself props for what she does. However, she says that little “Phee” would be so proud of all the things that this version of Napheesa has accomplished.  

From a difficult birth to a tough rehab, Collier pushed herself to make it happen. Help from friends and family — like WNBA veteran Candace Parker and her support system in Minnesota — got her to where she is now, getting the flowers she rightfully deserves.

With her recent recognition on the Forbes 30 under 30 list, Collier is quickly skyrocketing to a status that makes her synonymous with greatness. Her story is still being written, but adding a chapter like “Face of the WNBA” to her life’s book is just the beginning of what she wants for herself.  

“There are a lot of things I still want to accomplish in my career — winning a championship is one of them,” she said. “I also want to be MVP.”

Minnesota Lynx's Napheesa Collier (24) reacts to a basket during a WNBA basketball game against the Connecticut Sun at Mohegan Sun Arena
(Sarah Gordon/AP Photos)

With her impressive drive, and while fully clad in the comfiest lifestyle fashion Nike has to offer, it’s hard to imagine that Napheesa Collier won’t do everything she can to get there.  

Lynx forward Napheesa Collier makes 2024 Forbes 30 Under 30 list

Collier is adding a new accolade to her résumé, a Forbes 30 under 30 recipient in the category of Sports.

Minnesota Lynx forward Napheesa Collier returned to the WNBA in 2023 after taking most of the 2022 season off to welcome her first child. She finished fourth in scoring and seventh in rebounding this season while co-founding a new league with superstar Breanna Stewart, called Unrivaled, to play during the offseason.

Now Collier is adding a new accolade to her résumé: A Forbes 30 Under 30 recipient in the Sports category. She is the only WNBA player to make the list this year, although Robyn Brown, senior manager of brand and content strategy for the Phoenix Mercury, also represented the league on the list.

The Forbes 30 Under 30 lists 600 of the brightest young entrepreneurs, leaders and stars. There are 20 categories, including sports, media, games and social impact.

This season, Collier also made the 2023 All-WNBA first team, which was her second All-WNBA team selection, but her first to the first team. Collier’s trajectory is skyrocketing, and she is showing everyone that she is more than an athlete.

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WNBA’s Phee Collier makes Forbes 30 under 30 list after having a baby and dominating the 2023 season

Alexa, play “Superwoman” by Alicia Keys.

This year, the WNBA has been growing to new heights and ensuring sports fans know the league is here to stay. The hard work is paying off, and Forbes is recognizing a young WNBA star who is changing the world. Their annual 30 under 30 list now includes a new name: Napheesa Collier of the Minnesota Lynx.

Collier firmly landed in Forbes’ latest compilation of influential people changing the trajectory of the sports landscape after having a baby in 2022 and returning to the court in 2023 like she never left. She finished the season fourth in scoring, seventh in rebounding and snagged All-WNBA First Team honors. WOW.

It’s just another day at the office for Phee.

WNBA playoffs predictions: Will the Liberty crush the Aces’ chances of winning back-to-back?

For basketball heads everywhere, the WNBA playoffs are an out-of-body experience.

The WNBA playoffs are here. This is when regular season records mean nothing, and wins mean everything. It’s buzzer beaters, emphatically blocked shots, “what did I just see?” moments and scoring so good you’ll need a pulse check.

For basketball heads everywhere, this is an out-of-body experience. The level of play is elevated, and so are the expectations.

Will the Lynx fly too close to the Sun? (See what I did there?) Will the Liberty crush the Aces’ chances of winning back-to-back titles?

Who wins? Who’s out?

These are your 2023 WNBA playoff predictions:

Here’s what the AP voters absolutely got right and wrong for its 2023 WNBA awards

The AP WNBA awards are out and something don’t make sense.

The WNBA regular season slate ended Sunday, giving players and coaches one final opportunity to state their case for why they should be considered among the league’s best talent.

Following the end of the season, a 12-member media group from the Associated Press votes on awards such as Most Valuable Player (MVP), Defensive Player of the Year (DPOY), Coach of the Year (COY), and more. These awards precede the league awards that will be announced during post-season play, with the coveted league MVP award announced on September 26.

Here’s what the AP voters absolutely got right and wrong for its 2023 WNBA awards: