Minnesota Lynx forward Napheesa Collier is opening up about her decision to publicly criticize WNBA commissioner WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert’s “tone-deaf and dismissive” leadership.
“I just got to the point where I was fed up,” Collier said on Monday, nearly one week after delivering a scathing statement following the Lynx’s playoff elimination by the Phoenix Mercury in the semifinals. “No matter the consequences, I felt like it was something that needed to be done.”
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Collier spoke to former Vice President Kamala Harris on Monday during “A Day of Unreasonable Conversation,” a one-day summit held annually in Los Angeles for changemakers, storytellers and activists.
“I never had planned to do that,” Collier said. “I am on the union for CBA negotiations … 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. … And I saw nothing was changing.”
NAPHEESA COLLIER says the WNBA has the ‘worst leadership’ in scathing statement
Following the Lynx’s 86-81 Game 4 semifinal loss to the Phoenix Mercury on Sept. 28, Collier used her exit interview to air her grievances with Engelbert and the league, which she said has the “worst leadership in the world.”
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“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,” Collier said in her prepared statement. “We go to battle every day to protect a shield that doesn’t value us.”
On Monday, Collier said she decided to put pen to paper after her frustrations finally boiled over, adding that she was willing to deal with any ensuing consequences because it was ultimately the “right thing to do.”
“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,” said Collier, who wore a boot on her right foot after tearing several ligaments in her ankle and a muscle in her shin on a controversial play in the final seconds of Lynx’s Game 3 semifinal loss to the Mercury.
“Whether I was going to get annihilated for this or people were going to support me, I felt what I was doing was right. I felt like it needed to be said,” Collier added.
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In her statement, Collier recalled a specific conversation she had with Engelbert about WNBA officiating back in February during the inaugural season of Unrivaled, the 3-on-3 league co-founded by Collier and Breanna Stewart.”I also asked how she planned to fix the fact that players like Caitlin (Clark), Angel (Reese) and Paige (Bueckers), who are clearly driving massive revenue for the league, are making so little for their first four years. Her response was, ‘Caitlin (Clark) should be grateful to make $16 million off the court, because without the platform that the WNBA gives her, she wouldn’t make anything.'”
Collier continued: “In that same conversation she told me players should be, ‘On their knees thanking their lucky stars for the media rights deal that I got them.’ That’s mentality driving our league from the top … The league believes it succeeds despite its players, not because of them.”
Engelbert said she was “disheartened” by Collier’s characterization of their conversation in a statement released on social media on Tuesday. During her annual press conference ahead of the WNBA Finals, Engelbert denied making a comment about Clark and said there’s “a lot of inaccuracy about what I said or what I didn’t say.”
Engelbert said she planned to meet with Collier this week, but Collier reportedly called off the meeting following Engelbert’s press conference.
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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Napheesa Collier opens up about criticizing WNBA commissioner
