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WNBA Makes Napheesa Collier Announcement Amid Injury Concerns

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Sean Deveney | Last updated Jun 28, 2025 9:09 AM ET

For the last two games, the defending Western Conference champion Minnesota Lynx looked uneven and unsettled, following up a win over the Sparks at home with an unsightly loss to the Mystics, a game in which the Lynx scored only 64 points--their lowest total of the season, 19.6 points below their average production.

But they are excused for that. After all, they were playing without star forward Napheesa Collier, the front-runner for WNBA MVP as the league passes the one-third point of the 2025 season.

On Friday against the Dream in Atlanta, Collier was still questionable with the back injury that kept her out for two games. But she not only played, she delivered a reminder on her MVP status in a thrilling 96-92 win to move Minnesota to 13-2 on the season.

Collier scored 26 points, with seven rebounds and six assists, overcoming the injuryand earning the nightly nod from the league. Collier earned one of the league's "Top Performer" honors as the WNBA's Twitter/X account announced on Friday.

Napheesa Collier was the difference maker in her first game back, with 26 PTS, 7 REB, and 6 AST as the Lynx outlasted the Dream in overtime pic.twitter.com/ZOvvufL021
— WNBA (@WNBA) June 28, 2025

Minnesota nearly coughed up the game but had to withstand a late Dream rally that forced overtime, despite a 17-point Lynx lead in the first half. The game was an odd one, as thunderstorms in Georgia caused the lights at the Gateway Center Arena to go out briefly, resulting in an eight-minute delay.

The Lynx's Kayla McBride scored 18 points, including the final four points of the game at the free-throw line.

Napheesa Collier on how to manage nagging injuries and her back.

I think just making sure I’m activating before the games and practices, making sure that my core is tight, that’s always the thing with back injuries…so doing a lot of abb works, getting ready for summer(smiles)” pic.twitter.com/8bq8YmaHZW
— Andrew Dukowitz (@adukeMN) June 28, 2025

Collier played more than 40 minutes in the game, something of a concern for a player coping with back problems. After the win, Collier was asked about how she plans to deal with the back problem over the remainder of the season.

"I think just making sure I’m activating before the games and practices, making sure that my core is tight," she said. "That’s always the thing with back injuries, making sure you have a tight core. So, doing a lot of ab works, getting ready for summer.”

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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