The WNBA playoffs are set to begin Sunday with New York looking to become the fourth team to repeat as champions and Minnesota trying to avenge last season's heartbreaking loss in the Finals.
The Minnesota Lynx, which lost in overtime in a decisive Game 5 to New York last year, is the No. 1 seed and has looked like the best team for much of the season. It helps to have the best player too, one of the top two or three top candidates for league MVP along with A'ja Wilson and Alyssa Thomas.
It is a very tight race between players putting up historic numbers. Lynx coach Cheryl Reeve might be biased, but she's crystal-clear too.
"Napheesa Collier's been the best player in the WNBA this season and deserves MVP," Reeve said Thursday.
The Lynx have made it their mission to win the franchise's first championship since 2017. The team has been led by Collier, who became the second player in WNBA history to record a season where she shot over 50% from the fiield, 40% from behind the 3-point line and 90% from the free throw line.
Natisha Heideman had plenty of love for Collier after the regular season finale Thursday at Target Center, a win for the Lynx over Golden State who is also their first round aopponent in the playoffs.
"Yeah, I mean she's a GOAT like I said," says Heideman. "Without her we're not the Minnesota Lynx so I'm just super happy that she was able to accomplish this, and I know that she worked really hard for her goals so, yeah, we're just gonna set more goals now."
Collier adds that the stat line, an amazing demonstration of her efficiency and consistency, was a goal all along.
"Yeah, it's a goal that Cheryl gave me in the beginning of the year," said Collier. "It's just like a sense of accomplishment, you know? I'm a very goal-oriented person, so when I accomplish those it just feels good. Kind of close for the last game of the season, but it's just like a sense of accomplishment I guess."
Speaking of Heideman, she's been playing the best basketball of her career, and Reeve said that her game has helped pick up starting point guard Courtney Williams and given the Lynx bench a spark.
"Natisha carried Courtney tonight, and has done it repeatedly in these games," Reeve said. "But Courtney's OK with that, as we all know. As long as we're there for each other, and I appreciate that she has been there for us, because we've needed it. She's just, obviously the confidence that she's playing with, and it's really important to have a bench if you want to achieve great things."
Standing in the Lynx's way of a title could be the Las Vegas Aces — the last team to repeat as champions in 2022 and 2023. Las Vegas is the hottest team heading into the postseason with a 16-game winning streak. That's tied for the second longest winning streak in the league's history. Both Los Angeles (18 games) and Phoenix (16 games) went on to win the championship in those years. The Aces will play Seattle in the opening round.
Indiana is back in the playoffs, but missing star guard Caitlin Clark, who has been sidelined for the last two months with a groin injury and will miss the postseason.
The Liberty will have a difficult road as they are the No. 5 seed and open up at Phoenix on Sunday. After starting out 9-0, injuries decimated New York and left the Liberty in the difficult position of having to win at least one game on the road in each series to win a second straight title.
The Fever finished the season over .500 for the first time since 2015 and did it without Clark playing for the last two months. The Fever lost five players to season-ending injuries over the last two months and will have to figure a way to advance out of the first round for the first time in a decade They'll open up against the third-seeded Atlanta Dream.
Here are a few other tidbits from the playoffs:
Format change
The WNBA changed its format this season with the first round best-of-3 series playing the first two games on each team's homecourt with a decisive third game at the better-seeded team if necessary. The WNBA Finals will now be a best-of-7, up from the best-of-5 it's been for the last two decades.
Familiar place
Alyssa Thomas and DeWanna Bonner are no stranger to the postseason, guiding Connecticut to at least the semifinals the past six seasons. Both left the franchise this offseason and reunited in Phoenix with Bonner having a brief time in Indiana. Now they'll try and get the Mercury back to the championship round for the first time since 2021.
Thomas had an incredible season, retaking the single-season assist mark from Clark. She finished with 357.
Welcome newcomers
Golden State became the first expansion team to make the postseason in its inaugural year. The Valkyries were a surprise all season led by Veronica Burton, a leading candidate for the league's Most Improved Player Award. The Valkyries went 23-21.
The Associated Press contributed to this story.