Tension Still High in Minnesota Lynx Locker Room as Cheryl Reeve Gets Brutally Honest on Napheesa Collier & Co.

Sunday evening should have been the beginning of an exciting new chapter for Cecilia Zandalasini. Fresh off a breakout season with Minnesota, this was her moment. Instead, her former Lynx teammates showed up, including Napheesa Collier, and showed out. They handed the Valkyries a loss that stung extra hard. Right off the bat, in the first quarter itself, the Lynx started off with an edge of 4 points and maintained it throughout, resulting in a 75-86 victory.

Their 7-0 record stands tall, right at par with the leading NY Liberty. Pre-game, the Valkyries were predicted to have a 24.8% chance of winning against the undefeated Lynx. And they could not prove the odds wrong, much like their narrow loss to the New York Liberty on May 29, 2025. However, Cheryl Reeves isn’t letting that get to her squad’s head. She’s staying grounded, and maybe that’s the right way to go about it.

The tension in that locker room isn’t about fighting—it’s about Reeve pushing her team to be great. After leading the Lynx to the 2024 Finals and snagging Coach of the Year, she’s not letting them coast. That Game 5 loss to the Liberty, where a late foul call on Alanna Smith flipped the script, still burns.

Because if Napheesa Collier hadn’t returned from her injury, maybe, just maybe, the Lynx would have lost their streak. Coming off a foot injury that sidelined her last game, Phee took over with 24 points, 11 boards, 4 dimes. So in the postgame interview, she did not hold back from placing on table, the greater expectations she holds from her star squad.

She openly said “We know we’re capable of more and we know we have to do more… we don’t want to be pedestrian in anything we do.” Well, that’s actually how the elite coaches do it. Just like the Las Vegas Aces HC Becky Hammon, who was quick to humble her players by calling out their lack of an offensive grip, even after a 4 point win against the Seattle Storm. Even though Cheryl and Becky had contrastingly different opinions on who was deserving of the WNBA’s devensive player of the award out of A’ja Wilson and Napheesa Collier. This is the one trait they share, of not letting the squad loosen up even after winning.

Bright lighting Cheryl Reeve on the the Lynx not having a complete game yet

“We know we’re capable of more and we know we have to do more… we don’t want to be pedestrian in anything we do”#lynx pic.twitter.com/6wpXBgOaco

— Andrew Dukowitz (@adukeMN) June 2, 2025

And Cheryl Reeve was right this time. Because this performance was nowhere near the Lynx’s best. Despite the win, the Lynx’s third-quarter dominance was the turning point. It was the 17-8 run that shifted the momentum entirely. And that’s a huge margin, to just leave on a single quarter. It was basically just a win on paper for her. 

Napheesa Collier’s Lynx vs the Mercury

Cheryl Reeves’ Minnesota Lynx are rolling into Tuesday’s showdown with Phoenix. They are currently sporting a pristine 7-0 record. No flukes, just pure grit, balance, and a defense that strangles opponents. Napheesa Collier has been playing out of her mind (26.3 PPG, 8.3 RPG, 2.3 SPG). She is setting the tone while Courtney Williams (6.4 APG) and Jessica Shepard (7.4 RPG) are handling the grunt work.

May 6, 2025; Chicago, IL, USA; Minnesota Lynx forward Napheesa Collier (24) during the first half of a WNBA pre-season game at Wintrust Arena. Mandatory Credit: Kamil Krzaczynski-Imagn Images

They are not flashy, just really efficient. They rank 5th in scoring (84.4 PPG) and 3rd in defense (76.1 PPG allowed). Sure, they’re middle-of-the-pack in rebounding and threes, but their second-half execution is just ruthless. Just ask the Valkyries, one big run, and the game’s over. Nate Tibbets’ Phoenix, though? Don’t sleep on them. At 5-2, they have clawed back in games where nobody expected them to win.

They are fueled by Satou Sabally’s breakout (21.3 PPG, 8.1 RPG) and Alyssa Thomas’ Swiss Army knife act (15.2 PPG, 8.0 APG). Their offense isn’t explosive (79.7 PPG, 9th), but their defense is elite (75.3 PPG allowed, 2nd). If their threes fall (9.9 per game at 32.9%), they’re dangerous—especially since they’re holding opponents to a miserable 26.6% from deep. But their rebounding (-2.1 per game) and occasional lapses could sink them against a Lynx team that pounces on mistakes. It’s going to be a tough match between a team trying to maintain its veteran-heavy legacy and one that’s trying to build one.

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