It’s a big weekend for the Minnesota Lynx who are celebrating their 25th season.
The weekend-long commemoration will include the Lynx All-25 Team, previously unveiled during Women’s History Month. That group will be celebrated in a postgame ceremony following Friday’s game against Indiana at Target Center.
President of Basketball Operations and Head Coach Cheryl Reeve told Vineeta Sawkar on the WCCO Morning News that they’re excited to celebrate.
“We know that we’re representing kind of the history of our franchise tonight, with our 25 year celebration with many of the All-25 team in attendance,” Reeve says. “So it’s just going to be an unbelievable environment.
I think our players are really, really excited to represent those players in a way we’re really all proud of.”
There are multiple events planned over the weekend including a community basketball clinic in partnership with Urban Ventures on Saturday at Mayo Clinic Square. That clinic will also include members of the All-25 team.
“We started last night (Thursday), we had a group that included the commissioner of our league who is in town,” Reeve told WCCO. “They had a reception, there will be stuff going on prior to the game, receptions with the All-25 team that will be here. 5,000 or 6,000 people are going to get a commemorative 25th Anniversary item.”
On Sunday, the franchise will retire Lynx center Sylvia Fowles’ number 34 jersey in a special postgame banner unveiling ceremony. Fowles was drafted and spent seven seasons with the Chicago Sky before being traded to Minnesota for her final eight seasons. Fowles retired at the end of the 2022 season as one of the most decorated players in WNBA history.
The franchise’s Fastbreak Foundation is also hosting a 25th Anniversary Auction Friday through Sunday. Items include special “player packages” from starts like Maya Moore, Sylvia Fowles and Seimone Augustus. There are also a number of commemorative photos. You can see them all and bid here (bidding started at 9:00 a.m.).
After the start of the WNBA in 1997, the Lynx franchise was part of the third group of expansion teams that began play in 1999. Reeve credits Lynx and Timberwolves owner Glen Taylor for being at the forefront of the expansion of women’s professional basketball.
“Thank you so much to Glen Taylor and Becky Taylor who found this important and brought this franchise here,” Reeve says. “There were only at that time, 10 or 12 franchises. And you look at, as we know, only 50 states, to be one of about 12 states that have a WNBA team that was really meaningful.
There are still a few limited seats available for this weekend games which you can find here.
Svetlana Abrosimova
Nicky Anosike
Seimone Augustus
Rebekkah Brunson
Napheesa Collier
Crystal Dangerfield
Damiris Dantas
Teresa Edwards
Tonya Edwards
Sylvia Fowles
Charde Houston
Betty Lennox
Kayla McBride
Janel McCarville
Taj McWilliams-Franklin
Renee Montgomery
Maya Moore
Nicole Ohlde
Devereaux Peters
Odyssey Sims
Katie Smith
Lindsay Whalen
Candice Wiggins
Tamika Williams
Monica Wright
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