Minnesota Lynx star forward and five-time WNBA All-Star Napheesa Collier directed a scathing remark at the league’s commissioner, Cathy Engelbert, after her ill-timed comments about some of the game’s rising stars. The incident came to light after Collier addressed the media after the Lynx lost game 4 of the WNBA semifinals against the Phoenix Mercury on September 28.
In her exit interview, Collier expressed her grievances with the commissioner, stating it was “the worst leadership in the world.” She added, “The real threat to our league isn’t money, it isn’t ratings, or even missed calls, or even physical play. It’s the lack of accountability from the league office. We go to battle every day to protect a shield that doesn’t value us.” Furthermore, the Lynx star reiterated some of Engelbert’s statements during the duo’s discussion on the proposal for a new CBA tenure, as the current one expires in 2025.
Did Napheesa Collier Address Her Viral Takedown of the WNBA Commissioner?
On Monday, Collier took to the stage alongside former US Vice President Ms. Kamala Harris for a one-day summit, “A Day of Unreasonable Conversation,” held annually in Los Angeles, CA. During their conversation, the 29-year-old reflected on why she chose to speak up against Engelbert in public.
Napheesa Collier explains why she wrote the statement criticizing WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert in a conversation with former VP Kamala Harris at #UnreasonableConversation in LA. pic.twitter.com/o2BOXHZmUU
— maxwell millington (@mxwzy) October 7, 2025
Collier said, “I never had planned to do that. I am on the union for our CBA negotiations, like our collective bargaining negotiations for our league. And for so long, I felt like I saw what was going on behind closed doors. For so long, we tried to have these conversations and move the needle in those meetings that we would have with the league.”
She added, “You know, within our leadership, and I saw nothing was changing. You know, coaches, winning and losing alike, were complaining about the same things over and over again, players over and over again. And we weren’t seeing a change that our leadership was trying to make.”
Collier concluded, “And I think, I just got to the point where I was fed up, and you know, talked about this with me backstage, and it just resonated so much. It’s just like whether I was gonna get annihilated for this or people are gonna support me. I felt what I was doing was right; I felt like it needed to be said. So, no matter the consequences, I felt like it was something that needed to be done.”
Following the statements, the WNBA commissioner expressed her dismay at Collier’s wrong characterization of their discussion in a social media post. Earlier, Engelbert had denied making any hasty comments towards Caitlin Clark and other young rising league stars during the annual press conference before the Finals.
