The Lynx held their season-ending media access on Tuesday, and Napheesa Collier wasted little time in getting things off her chest.
The star forward opened with a prepared statement criticizing the WNBA not only for the state of its on-court officiating — a trenchant topic during this postseason — but for its lack of transparency and accountability, starting with Commissioner Cathy Engelbert.
“We have the best players in the world. We have the best fans in the world,” Collier said. “But right now, we have the worst leadership in the world.”
Asked if she and other players were aware of Collier’s prepared words beforehand, teammate Alanna Smith said, “Yes, and we back everything that Phee said.”
The WNBA’s collective bargaining agreement expires on Oct. 31, two years earlier than the original terms because the players opted out of the deal in 2024. Although interest in the league and its many star players is at an all-time high — ESPN said 2025 was its most watched regular season — many players are still playing overseas to supplement their income.
Asked if she believes WNBA players have the leverage to turn down a CBA they don’t like, Collier was clear.
“I think we have the most power that we’ve ever had in the history of women’s sports, in the history of our specific sport,” she said. “All this money that they’re talking about is nonexistent without the players. We hold all the cards. So, yes, I do think we have the power to do that.
“Does anyone want to do that? No. We love the sport, want to play, we want to get paid, but we have to stand on our principles and we have to stand for what is right, and that’s something that we’re not going to budge on.”
Smith agreed, saying players would “exercise that power, and that right” if they don’t get a deal they believe is fair.
Collier’s voice is a strong one. A five-time all-star, she was the 2025 All-Star Game MVP, and finished second to Las Vegas’ A’ja Wilson for the 2025 league MVP. She is former defensive player of the year and was league’s second-leading scorer in the regular season (22.6 ppg.) behind. Wilson.
She is respected throughout the league and deeply embedded in the players’ CBA negotiations.
Lynx coach Cheryl Reeve, who had her own run-in with the league after criticizing officiating in Game 3 of the semifinals, declined to address Collier’s comments but said, “Obviously, Phee’s voice is a really important one.”
Wearing a walking boot on the injured left ankle that knocked her out of Minnesota’s last game of the season — a Game 4 loss in Phoenix in the Western Conference semifinals — Collier was most critical of Engelbert, the WNBA’s commissioner since 2019.
Collier recounted a conversation with Engelbert about rookie contracts, specifically how they pertain to a player like Caitlin Clark, already a star while playing at Iowa. “Without the platform that the WNBA gives her,” Collier said she was told, “she wouldn’t make anything.”
In the same conversation, Collier said, Engelbert told her that WNBA players should be “on their knees” thanking her for the media rights deal she negotiated.
“That’s the mentality driving our league from the top,” Collier said. “We go to battle every day to protect a shield that doesn’t value us. The league believes it succeeds despite its players, not because of them.”
A message to the WNBA asking for comment has been sent to the league.
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