The King has spoken! But this time, it is not for his ‘sister,’ A’ja Wilson. While the Aces star might have swept the MVP award unanimously, her WNBA rival is no lesser as she was praised by LeBron James himself. Finishing as the runner-up in the MVP category, Napheesa Collier won the DPOY award, trumping Wilson in the same. If that wasn’t enough, she extended her exceptional display into the WNBA playoffs that has helped the Minnesota Lynx lead the series against the Connecticut Sun by a 2-1 margin. And especially her performance in Game 3 was lauded by ‘The Chosen One’.

“FACTS!!! She’s a BEAST! Game so damn smooth and complete! TOUGH,” James wrote on X after an exceptional showcase of skills by Collier during Game 3 on Friday. Retweeting the Indiana Pacers star Tyrese Haliburton’s tweet, James looked to agree with him. Haliburton had stated that “Napheesa been killing!!”

“Everyone has an off night and I try to contribute in other ways to help the team,” the Minnesota Lynx star Napheesa Collier had to say about her poor Game 2 performance against the Connecticut Sun on Tuesday. So coming into Game 3, she was sure that she had to dominate. And she did just that! She scored a game-high 26 points and 11 rebounds, contributing to both ends of the floor.

Collier averaged 20.4 points with 9.7 rebounds per game during the regular season. If that wasn’t enough, she gave her fans a view of her mental resolve when she dominated during clutch moments. With 2:43 minutes left, the Lynx led by an 81-73 margin on Friday. It was then that the reigning Commissioner’s Cup MVP played an important role in the next three plays, almost sealing the deal for her team. As the Lynx forward Alanna Smith assisted, the WNBA DPOY scored off an 8-foot two-pointer.

Following that, she displayed her prowess on the opposite end of the court, stealing the ball from Marina Mabrey and passing the rock to Smith for a 25-foot three-point jumper. All this made the lead unassailable for the Sun, who failed to surpass Collier & Co. in Game 3. Talking about her aggression in Game 3, Collier enumerated “It’s crunch time, I knew I had to be aggressive, especially in one-on-one coverage. Then, you know, just being the same on the other side, we really had to be aggressive. They were playing with desperation at the end.”

And while Collier must have enjoyed praises from James, Wilson must have been disappointed for not getting one despite her power-packed performances.

A’ja Wilson continues her dominant display despite no spotlight

While Collier stumbled in game 2, the situation is not the same for A’ja Wilson. She has, since the beginning of the off-season, given her best, whether the Aces emerge victorious or not. And when the Las Vegas-based franchise lost their first two games in the semi-finals against the NY Liberty, the 3x WNBA MVP just amped up her display, taking complete onus for the team.

In a must-win situation on Friday, Wilson scored 19 points with 14 rebounds, keeping their hopes of defending the title alive. She singlehandedly scored 7 of the initial 9 points for her team in the first quarter and continued the momentum up until the end, as the Aces won by a 95-81 margin. Following her double-double, a confident Wilson in the post-game press conference stated “This is an elimination game. I cannot sit down, that’s looking like giving up. That’s looking like quitting to me.”

Hopefully, James will notice Wilson’s exceptional display soon and maybe praise her for the same. As of now, Collier must be hungrier to end the series in Game 4 by helping her team notch up another trailblazing win.