Shortly after her arrival to Minnesota in 2024, Courtney Williams quickly became a fan favorite among Lynx fans with her personality, fire and energy she brings on and off the court on a daily basis.
In 2025, that fandom has only grown, stretching beyond Minnesota and winning fans over across the country with her behind-the-scenes entertainment — yes, we mean StudBudz — her light-hearted personality and her unwavering confidence. All of which are not a show, but truly who Williams is.
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Yet beyond that personality lies one heck of a basketball player who has taken her game to the next level in her second season with the Lynx. And Williams has become an extremely important piece to the success of her squad as they pursue a championship.
“She takes us on a ride, every day we are with her. It’s a fun ride,” Cheryl Reeve said earlier this season. “She just has this really unique confidence in herself that never waivers. … She’s unique in that way. Her will to win is really high and her play is contagious.”
Providing that Spark
When it comes to any floor general for a team, they are incredibly important as the focal point of the team, and oftentimes, are the calming presence throughout the game. Williams has been that for Minnesota, but she has the ability to step on the gas and light a fire under the Lynx unlike any other on the team.
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The latest example of that came in Game 1 of the semifinals against the Phoenix Mercury when the Lynx trailed the Mercury 47-40 going into halftime. After a rough opening half defensively, Williams and the rest of the Lynx were vocal about the disappointing half in the locker room at halftime, but all collaborated on how to fix things.
“She was part of the conversation at halftime (in Game 1),” Reeve said after Game 1. “She put her money where her mouth was and tried to change things for us and make things difficult. … Court was terrific.”
Williams not only contributed to problem-solving mid-game to try and correct things before Minnesota’s deficit grew larger, but she backed it up with her play on the court by providing a much-needed spark both offensively and defensively.
“When you’ve got players who are going off, you have to come in at halftime and throw out ideas and throw out different things,” Williams said after Game 1. “I think we do a good job of just adjusting, and it worked.”
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By the end of the game, Williams led the way with a team-high 23 points, eight rebounds, seven assists and five steals, tying a franchise record for steals in a playoff game. Williams was incredibly valuable on the defensive end, especially stripping Phoenix’s Alyssa Thomas in the paint on numerous occasions and helping shut down Thomas and the Mercury in the second half en route to a Game 1 victory.
Williams took the game over, and she continues to showcase why she is such a big piece to the success of Minnesota.
“What I appreciate about Courtney is just listening and diagnosing and believing us when we tell her there are certain things available. We needed aggression, you have to be able to have aggression against (Phoenix),” Reeve said. “Courtney did it for us, even though she is the smallest player on the court. She got to good spaces and was the player of the game for us.”
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The Difference Maker
As Minnesota continues on in the WNBA Playoffs and not only tries to defeat Phoenix in the best-of-five semifinals but aims to return to the Finals and cross the finish line this year, the Lynx need Williams to be exactly who she is and continue to play the way she has in the semifinals.
Her energy and spark offensively as the starting floor general are one thing, but when Williams is pairing those clutch shots and momentum-swinging plays with defense like we saw in Game 1 on Sunday, her game takes off to the next level — and so does the play of the Lynx.
“I always have confidence in Courtney. I think when she changes her pace, between her and (Hiedeman) … it’s a 40-minute game, so when we’re able to have spurts of that in transition, it gives us energy as a group,” Kayla McBride said. “When we get out in transition, that’s her bread and butter. When she’s out there hooping and is confident, it’s contagious. It just becomes a lot of fun out there playing the game within the game.”
Teams will always focus on and center their gameplan against Napheesa Collier and McBride at the head of Minnesota’s attack, but having that third option showing up consistently makes it even tough to scheme against. And quite frankly, can be exhausting for the opposition.
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Williams’ play most of this season has been stellar — she earned an All-Star nod for a reason. But her play in the postseason, and notably in the semifinals thus far, has been extremely valuable and is the key to Minnesota swiping the semifinals against Phoenix.
And at the end of the day, there’s just one thing that matters to Williams.
“I just want to win,” she said. “I try to bring the same energy for 40 minutes.”
If the Lynx can get that energy and that mentality — and play to pair alongside it — the rest of the postseason, they are going to be an awfully tough team to stop.
