Rudy Gobert Hails Napheesa Collier as Lynx Star and Cheryl Reeve Earn Prestigious WNBA Honors

Napheesa Collier is having the time of her life. Helping the Minnesota Lynx win their games, credit to an exceptional defense, Collier has helped the team advance to the semi-finals. And before she takes on the Connecticut Sun in a power-packed clash, the 28-year-old was awarded the DPOY award on Sunday. If that wasn’t enough, she received a congratulatory message from none other than the NBA DPOY last season: the Minnesota Timberwolves’ Rudy Gobert. Meanwhile, it’s been raining awards for the Lynx as their head coach Cheryl Reeve too bagged a coveted award.

“Hey, Napheesa.I just want to congratulate you on winning the Defensive Player of the Year. From one to another. Credit to your hard work, your consistency, your toughness, and all the things that you do to help your team win every night. And those things don’t overshrub on the stack sheet but it’s about winning. And I’ll be watching. Hope you guys go all the way. Go Lynx let’s go,” Gobert stated.

Coming into the season, Collier had the highest rebounds for her team in the first 12 games, which many say was a sign of what was to come later. By the end of May, she was consistently contributing to the defense as she collected her 1000th career rebound during a matchup against the reigning champions, only to become the sixth Lynx star to reach the milestone. Not only this, but she also contributed in steals as in June during a game against the Sparks, Collier had a franchise high of 8 steals. With this, she joined the ranks of Cynthia Cooper and Chamique Holdsclaw to tally 30 or more points and 8 steals in a singular game.

Her performances saw Minnesota grab the second spot in the defensive rating with 94.8 in the regular season. Clinching her first DPOY title, Collier received a majority of 36 votes, which helped her join Sylvia Fowles as the only other Lynx star to win the title. Overall, Collier averaged 20.4 points with 9.7 rebounds per game. Hence, receiving greetings from Gobert, who had eclipsed Victor Wmbanyama and Bam Adebayo, to win the same title this season is only welcoming. With this Gobert and Collier are the first players in history to win the DPOY while belonging to the same city in the two leagues. However, this was not the only award for the Lynx today.

Cheryl Reeve bags 2 major awards

The Lynx could only make it to Round 1 of the playoffs last year. Nonetheless Reeve, for her coaching, was inducted into the Minnesota Sports Hall of Fame for the 2023 class. Coming into this season, the objective was clear: Reeve wanted to pay back to the franchise that had given her so much.

Backed by her vast experience, Reeve crafted strategies that could lead them to their fifth WNBA title. And as difficult as that sounds, Reeve has propelled the team to the semi-finals this season.

So when the voting for the 2024 WNBA Coach of the Year was done, Reeve received 62 votes for first place. Not only that, she also got 10 votes (the highest for any nominee) for the 2024 WNBA Basketball Executive of the Year. Notably, apart from being the head coach for the Lynx, Reeve is also President of Basketball Operations for the Twin City franchise. Thus, she took home both awards.

Hopefully, the award sessions would only help the Lynx perform better during Game 1 of the semi-final against the Connecticut Sun. And maybe this is what they needed to boost their confidence and steer their campaign in the right direction.