As part of an extraordinary press conference on Tuesday, Minnesota Lynx superstar Napheesa Collier revealed the extent of a left ankle injury that left her unable to play in Game 4 of the WNBA semifinals against the Phoenix Mercury.
Without Collier and suspended head coach Cheryl Reeve, the Lynx succumbed to an 86-81 defeat in Phoenix that ended their season, two games shy of a return trip to the WNBA Finals. Collier was unable to play because, in the final minute of Game 3, she collided with Mercury star Alyssa Thomas, falling awkwardly on her left leg as Thomas stole the ball and laid it in for the game-sealing score.
MORE: Lynx's Napheesa Collier bashes WNBA amid hefty fine for Cheryl Reeve
Collier, who finished runner-up to A'ja Wilson in WNBA MVP voting, was seen in a wheeled scooter before and after Game 4. She revealed that she "tore a couple ligaments" in her left ankle -- an injury that would have rendered her unavailable for the WNBA Finals, let alone a fifth and deciding game of the semifinals.
Napheesa Collier Full and unedited statement
— Andrew Dukowitz (@adukeMN) September 30, 2025
I’ll have specific quotes after media is done pic.twitter.com/k3BlmTVmPh
It remains to be seen whether Collier participates in the second season of the Unrivaled 3x3 league, where Collier's husband Alex Bazzell serves as league president. Unrivaled tips off on Jan. 5, and based on the explosive prepared statement that Collier read on Tuesday, it sure sounds like she would rather represent the rapidly-growing offseason league than Cathy Engelbert's WNBA.
"We go to battle every day to protect a shield for a league that doesn't value us," Collier said of the WNBA and its commissioner.
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