Napheesa Collier said she has not thought about free agency after the Minnesota Lynx were swept by the New York Liberty in the first round.
Napheesa Collier said Thursday she has not thought about her upcoming free agency, less than 48 hours after the New York Liberty eliminated the Minnesota Lynx from the WNBA playoffs.
Her comments came during the Lynx's end-of-season exit interviews in Minneapolis, in an availability reported by ESPN.
The No. 8 seed Liberty won Game 1 of the first-round series 91-75 at Target Center on Sunday. Two days later, New York closed out the sweep with an 87-71 win at Barclays Center. Minnesota became the first No. 1 seed in WNBA playoff history to lose to a No. 8 seed, according to ESPN.
Collier loves the organization and her teammates.
"Honestly, I haven't even thought about [my future]," Collier said. "We lost less than 48 hours ago and we didn't expect to be here, so I really haven't had any time to decompress or anything like that.
"I can tell you I love it here," Collier continued. "I love the organization. I love my team and everything like that, but I just haven't had the time to give that any thought."
Collier Faces Unrestricted Free Agency
She is an unrestricted free agent after playing the 2026 season on a one-year, $1.4 million supermax contract. ESPN reported that Collier chose the one-year deal over a multiyear contract.
All eight of her WNBA seasons have come in Minnesota. The Lynx took her sixth overall in the 2019 draft, and she was named Rookie of the Year that season.
Her 2026 season did not begin until July 22. Collier injured her left ankle in Game 3 of the 2025 semifinals against the Phoenix Mercury, then had surgery on her right ankle in January and her left ankle in March. She returned to practice July 1.
In her season debut at Seattle, Collier had 24 points and 10 rebounds in 22 minutes of an 86-76 win over the Storm.
She averaged 16.8 points, 6.9 rebounds, and 2.6 assists in 16 regular-season games and shot 50.0 percent from the field. From 2023 to 2025, Collier averaged at least 20 points and seven rebounds per game each season. She finished fourth, second, and second in MVP voting over those three years. A'ja Wilson won the award in 2024 and 2025.
Collier Proud of Work Behind Her Return
Collier is proud of the work that went into getting back on the court.
"It wasn't the level that I expected for myself," Collier explained. "I'm proud of the work that I put into getting to that point. My ultimate goal is to get back on the court and ultimately to help my team win a championship. Obviously, we fell short of that, so that's hard.
"But still proud of what I was able to accomplish and more than anything proud of the team as well," Collier added. "Obviously, I wasn't 100%, but I gave 100% of what I was able to."
"Everybody could see Napheesa Collier wasn't Napheesa Collier," Lynx coach Cheryl Reeve said.
Against New York, Collier scored 12 points on 6-of-14 shooting in Game 1. Breanna Stewart had 34 points and 12 rebounds for the Liberty that afternoon.
In Game 2, Collier finished with 14 points and seven rebounds, again on 6-of-14 shooting, while Jonquel Jones posted 21 points and 13 rebounds and the Liberty outscored Minnesota 44-28 in the paint.
New York won both games by 16 points. The Liberty, who went 26-18 in the regular season, advance to face the Atlanta Dream in the semifinals after Atlanta swept the Washington Mystics.
Minnesota finished 33-11, the best record in the league.
Lynx Enter an Important Offseason
The franchise won four WNBA titles between 2011 and 2017. Collier was the 2024 Defensive Player of the Year, and that same season the Lynx reached the Finals, where they lost to the Liberty in five games. She is a five-time All-Star.
Collier said the fans are a big reason other teams have a hard time playing at Target Center.
