Napheesa Collier sat on the Minnesota Lynx’s bench with an earpiece in one ear and her attention focused on the camera pointing up at her, held by an ESPN crew member kneeling below her on the floor. She answered questions about the Lynx’s upcoming WNBA semifinals series against the Connecticut Sun in the virtual pregame interview with WNBA Countdown.

A couple feet in front of her, Collier’s daughter, Mila, played with one of the Lynx’s celebratory rally towels in honor of the former UConn women’s basketball star’s incredible season. The 2-year-old stretched out the towel face up on the court and laid down in front of it. “Mama! Mama! Mama!” she said while glancing between Collier’s picture on the towel and starring up at her mom.

Moments later, thousands of those blue rally towels whipped up and down throughout the arena. The home crowd roaring for its star. Collier stood at halfcourt, holding up this year’s WNBA Defensive Player of the Year trophy while the home crowd erupted in celebration.

Collier’s life changed completely when she had Mila in 2022. Her day-to-day schedule became a constant balancing act of motherhood and basketball. She took the new lifestyle and not only made it work, but learned to thrive in the new chaos. She’s intentional with her workouts and with her movements on the court. She pushes her teammates as a selfless leader, while attacking each and every rebound and defensive assignment with a relentless motor.

Two years removed from her pregnancy; Collier played the best basketball of her career this season. She’s become the league’s best defender and remains one of its most dangerous offensive weapons. Collier came in second in MVP voting this season behind only a historic year from A’ja Wilson. However, the former Husky, beat out Wilson for Defensive Player of the Year and led the Minnesota Lynx to the WNBA Finals — the franchise’s first appearance in the championship series since 2017.

“For Phee to respond in such a way that allowed her to reach one of the highest accolades that can be bestowed upon a player, in my opinion, Defensive Player of the Year; I mean proud is just an understatement,” said Lynx head coach Cheryl Reeve.

Setting example

UConn associate head coach Chris Dailey gave Dorka Juhász one key piece of advice when the former Husky began her first WNBA training camp with Minnesota as a rookie in 2023.

“I remember talking to Coach Dailey after being drafted and she’s like, ‘Just make sure you follow everything that Napheesa does, like you do it with the same intensity,’” Juhász said. “That really stuck with me. Every time in practice, I looked at her, like if she was in front of me, and I’m like, ‘What is she doing? How fast? How intense?’”

Collier sat out the majority of 2022 season recovering from pregnancy but was poised to become Minnesota’s new franchise face following the 2022 retirement of longtime veteran Slyvia Fowles. Collier was named captain heading into 2023 and looked ready to resume her role as one of Minnesota’s key contributors.

The 6-foot forward was a two-time First-Team AP All-American and a two-time American Athletic Conference Player of the Year throughout her career in Storrs. Minnesota drafted the Missouri native No. 6 overall in 2019 and the former Husky wasted no time adapting to the league. Collier was not only named an All-Star but won the league’s Rookie of the Year award her first year in the WNBA.

And in the five years since, she’s only continued to grow her game in nearly every category. Collier averaged 13.1 points and 6.6 rebounds as a rookie. During her second year, she increased those numbers to 16.1 points and nine rebounds per game.

Minnesota Lynx forward Napheesa Collier reacts as Connecticut Sun forward DeWanna Bonner, left, looks on, during the first half of Game 4 in the WNBA basketball semifinals, Sunday, Oct. 6, 2024, in Uncasville, Conn.

Collier delivered Mila in May 2022. She immediately jumped into recovery mode to get her body back into shape so she could share the court one final time with Fowles. Collier played the last four games of the regular season that August, averaging 7.3 points, three rebounds, one assist and 0.5 steals in 22.8 minutes per game.

By the time the 2023 season started, Collier was back fully healthy and with a year of motherhood under her belt. She had routines in place to help out with Mila thanks to assistance from her parents and husband. Her support system took turns watching Mila during Minnesota’s road trips while her dad took her on the nights before games so Collier could rest.

“I think just the mentality, ever since I had Mila just coming back, knowing that I have a limited time to get what I need to get done at the gym, and I feel like it focuses me,” Collier said. “It also puts a lot of stuff into perspective. She’s the most important thing in my life, and so I think it just gives you a lot of perspective on the game and not taking everything as seriously. … It makes me want to work even harder, so I’m getting the most out of my time, and then I can get back to my family.”

Collier became the face of the franchise in 2023 with Fowles gone. Her newfound leadership was loud and set tone for training camp.

“She’s been evolving in this role,” Reeve said. “When Seimone (Augustus) was here, Syl was here, they were taking her under their wing. So really, she’s been training to be in this space. And the veteran that she is now, she understands so much more, right? Obviously, the veteran nature, she’s seen a lot more. She’s able to put her voice on things, understand what her team needs from her. She’s been a terrific leader for us.”

Her teammates were impressed with Collier’s ability to still give her full self in practices and games, just as she does at home with her family. She makes time for her teammates and doesn’t let the basketball consume her life outside of the sport.

“She’s a role model as a teammate,” Juhász said. “… It’s just crazy to see how consistent she is every single day, working hard, being a humble teammate. I think that’s one of the craziest things. She’s a humble superstar. …

“We always forget she’s doing all that crazy stuff on the court, but she’s also a mother. Like, she’s waking up at 4 a.m., you know, whenever Mila wakes up. So, I think that’s just so special that, especially as a young mother, she can put on a clinic on the court and then off the court, just being an amazing mother. I think that’s just everything about her is just so awesome to see. And, like, it’s a role model for everybody who wants to be, obviously, a mother and be a great player in the league, and just be humble.”

When asked what kind of leader Collier is, her teammates repeatedly use the world “humble” to describe their top scorer. Collier knows her impact is heavy on the Lynx but doesn’t let that stop her from always giving her teammates credit and bringing them into the spotlight with her. When she wins accolades and puts on top performances, her teammates go out of their way to celebrate her in hope that she takes the moment to celebrate her own success just as much as the team’s.

“She’s the most down to earth superstar I’ve ever met in my life, like she just makes playing with her so easy,” Lynx forward Alanna Smith said. “Success is so easy when Phee’s your teammate.”

Defensive prowess

Minnesota returned just five players from 2023 for its 2024 roster. It signed veteran guards Courtney Williams and Natisha Heideman along with adding forwards Myisha Hines-Allen and Smith. On paper, the Lynx 2024 roster didn’t look incredibly stacked, yet its potential was intriguing.

Not long into the first couple weeks of training camp Reeve noticed this team had something special. It built quick chemistry with everyone buying into the team’s mission and wanting to play for each other.

Reeve pulled Collier aside and told her the Lynx needed her more than ever.

“I think Phee has just really been determined,” Reeve said. “You just have to ask her. Whatever you want her to do, whatever you want her to focus on, and she just continues just to kind of bite (it) off and just keeps chewing and chewing and then you give her more, right? She bites it off. And this was a big space we felt like in order for us to really get back. What Phee wants to do is compete for a championship. And I said, ‘In order for us to do that, our defense has got to get better, and your best player has got to be the one at the forefront of that.’”

Collier met the moment.

She opened the season with 20 points, 12 rebounds and two blocks against Seattle on May 14. Three days later, also against Seattle, she recorded 29 points, nine rebounds, six steals and two blocks. Collier recorded double-doubles in four of the following five games to close out the first month of the season.

Collier grabbed a career-high eight steals on June 14 against Los Angeles. The former Husky was quickly becoming a monster on defense, getting in opponents’ faces with her length and making life miserable for other bigs under the basket with her size and quick feet. Collier was relentless in sticking with defensive assignments and calling out play changes for her teammates.

“She’s confident. She’s versatile. It seems like every game, she’s taking more ownership of that leadership role and more assertiveness,” Sun head coach Stephanie White said. “…She’s extended her range. She’s playing off the bounce. She’s tough to match up with. You match her up with a guard. She takes you down and she shoots right on top of you, match her up with a post and she can spread you out and shoot the 3 and take them off the bounce as well. … Her efficiency, her ability to play all over the floor and play at a high level for a lot of minutes is key, but she’s just a hell of a player. An MVP caliber player.”

The four-time All-Star ended the regular season with career-highs averages in defensive rebounds (7.5 per game), total rebounds (9.7 pg), assists (3.4), steals (1.9) and blocks (1.4). She held opponents to a career-best 39.6 field goal percentage. The former Husky was ranked in the top 10 in the league for defensive boards (No. 4), steals (No. 2), blocks (No. 8) and defensive win shares (No. 1 at 0.233).

Because of Collier’s defense sparking the rest of the Lynx’s efforts, Minnesota finished the regular season with the second-best defensive rating among the league’s 12 teams (a 94.8 defensive rating compared to top-ranked Connecticut’s 94.1).

“Phee does a little bit of everything,” Juhász said. “She uses her length. She’s not afraid to go after bigger post players. She’s doing everything, like blocks and steals, just being in everybody’s presence. … She’s been doing an amazing job, and that’s why we are so far (in the postseason) because of her and her intensity and aggression.”

On the morning of Sept. 28, a day before the Lynx hosted Sun in Game 1 of their semifinals series, Collier was named the 2024 Defensive Player of the Year. She received 36 out of 67 votes for the award, while Wilson finished second with 26 votes.

It’s Collier’s second Defensive Player of the Year award after being named the 2019 AAC Defensive Player of the Year during her senior year at UConn. When asked what she’s most proud of her in defensive evolution, Collier responded:

Connecticut seniors Napheesa Collier embraces Connecticut head coach Geno Auriemma during senior day before an NCAA college basketball game against Houston, Saturday, March 2, 2019, in Storrs, Conn.

“I’m proud that I proved Coach Geno (Auriemma) wrong,” Collier said with a laugh. “I think defense is all about effort and about the way that you play. It takes a lot of brain. It takes a lot of studying the game and knowing your styles. … It’s essential if you want to be a good teammate and that’s something that I take pride in myself.”

Collier’s improvements didn’t stop on the defensive end this season. The forward’s new defensive mindset allowed her to make better reads on offense and helped her spread out Minnesota’s attack.

“I think just having that overall aggression on both sides of the ball, we are always saying that defense leads offense, because it lets you get in transition and lets you push the pace,” Collier said. “It lets you get the other team on their heels. So, we take a lot of pride in our defense, and it’s something that obviously I worked hard to improve because I know it’s what’s best for the team.”

Collier recorded 18 double-doubles this season, including five of which she scored 29 points or more. She grabbed down a career-high 18 rebounds to go along with 27 points against Las Vegas in August. And that was after she led her team to the WNBA Commissioner’s Cup Championship title against New York in June. While Wilson took home MVP honors (the Aces’ star became the first WNBA player to score 1,000 points in a single season), Collier finished second in the league voting with 467 points to Wilson’s 670.

“Two-way players are hard to come by and so when you’ve got someone who loves to play defense as much as they love the offensive end; like that’s invaluable,” Smith said. “It’s showed with how well that we’ve played having a player like that, valuing defense as much as offense. We’re really lucky to have someone like Phee.”

Minnesota Lynx forward Napheesa Collier (24) reacts after a Connecticut Sun timeout called during the first half of Game 5 of a WNBA basketball semifinals, Tuesday, Oct. 8, 2024, in Minneapolis.

The former Husky opened the playoffs in dominant fashion. Collier scored 38 points on 11-of-19 shooting in Game 1 of the first round against Phoenix. In Game 2, she scored a career-high 42 points, going 14-of-20 from the floor.

“She got a little bit more of that fire, like feistiness in her,” Juhász said. “We could see her getting into it with some players this year, and she doesn’t back down …  She’s amazing, and I think she just put a lot of emphasis on getting back to shape and just being that franchise player and just making sure that she’s unstoppable. And she’s been unstoppable so far.”

With Minnesota’s season on the line in Game 5 of its semifinals series against Connecticut Tuesday night, Collier once more rose to the ocassion. The forward finished with 27 points (on 10-of-16 shooting), 11 rebounds, four assists and four blocks to become the first WNBA player to ever record 25 points and 10 rebounds in three consecutive playoff games, according to ESPN.

The Lynx’s 88-77 win sends the team back to the Finals for the first time since last winning it all in 2017 — when it was led by fellow former Husky star Maya Moore.

Now, Collier has the chance to win her first WNBA title and cement herself further into Minnesota and UConn history.