The top-seeded Minnesota Lynx will be without star forward Napheesa Collier in Sunday’s win-or-go-home Game 4 semifinal clash against the Phoenix Mercury. The Lynx announced that Collier has been ruled out due to a left ankle injury. The announcement follows Collier’s collision with Mercury forward Alyssa Thomas in the final seconds of a heated Game 3 on Friday.
Collier’s loss is a huge one for Minnesota. The 2025 WNBA MVP runner-up led the Lynx in scoring, averaging 22.6 points per game during the regular season — second only to league MVP A’ja Wilson. Collier kept pace with her impressive regular season output this postseason, averaging 20.6 points and 6.8 rebounds average across five playoff contests.
The Lynx will also be without head coach Cheryl Reeve, who was ejected in the final minute of Friday’s semifinal showdown after her reaction to the play that saw Collier injured. The forward appeared to roll her ankle and was helped off the court after making contact with Phoenix’s Alyssa Thomas as the clock wound down. The league announced a one game suspension for the coach’s conduct during the game and her unfiltered postgame comments about the officiating.
That suspension will be served Sunday.
Collier missed seven games this summer as she recovered from a right ankle injury, during which Minnesota went 5-2. The team did not elaborate on her injury, which Reeve had speculated in her post-game comments Friday night was “probably a fracture.” No timeline was provided, either.
Lynx guard DiJonai Carrington will also miss Sunday’s game with a foot injury that has ended her season, the team announced, as the Lynx look to secure a short-handed road win to keep the series alive.