Napheesa Collier Named WNBA Player of the Month, Will Miss Time With Ankle Injury

Photo by Ben Brewer/Getty Images

The case for MVPhee only continues to grow as the WNBA season progresses. And the accolades are backing that up.

On Monday, the same day Minnesota Lynx head coach Cheryl Reeve was named WNBA Coach of the Month, Lynx star forward and MVP frontrunner Napheesa Collier was named the WNBA’s Western Conference Player of the Month for her performance in the month of July. New York Liberty’s Sabrina Ionescu was named Eastern Conference Player of the Month.

In 12 games in July, which saw the Lynx finish a league-best

9-3, Collier averaged a WNBA-leading 23.1 points, 6.9 rebounds, 3.1 assists, 1.9 blocks and 1.8 steals per game while shooting 55.1% from the field.

POTM. again. pic.twitter.com/kWaCkP9QJO

— Minnesota Lynx (@minnesotalynx) August 4, 2025

This monthly honor is the third straight of the season for Collier, who also won Player of the Month honors in May and June. She is now third in franchise history in most Player of the Month honors, trailing only Maya Moore with eight and Sylvia Fowles with four.

Collier has continued to shine and be the frontrunner to win league MVP in 2025, an honor that would be the first of her career and one that she will win if she continues at the pace she’s played at to this point. In 26 games, Collier leads the WNBA in scoring (23.5 points per game) while ranking fourth in blocks (1.6), fourth in steals (1.8), fifth in field goal percentage (53.7%) and ninth in rebounds (7.5). She is the only player in the league to rank in the top five in the four major statistical categories — points, blocks, steals and field goal percentage.

Make that 3x Western Conference POTM

Napheesa Collier SHOWED OUT in July to lead the @minnesotalynx to a 9-3 record.

She averaged 23.1 PPG, 6.9 RPG, 3.1 APG en route to her 3rd straight @Kia Western Conference Player of the Month honors!#KiaPOTM | #WelcometotheW pic.twitter.com/WphdMKr2M2

— WNBA (@WNBA) August 4, 2025

Over the month of July, Collier tallied six games with 25 or more points, the second most in league history over the course of a month. She also put on one heck of a show in the WNBA All-Star Game on July 19 in Indiana, posting a record-breaking 36 points to earn MVP honors in a game featuring the WNBA’s biggest stars.

---

Collier to Miss Time With Ankle Injury

Minnesota fans and fans league-wide have been holding their breath since last Saturday’s game against the Las Vegas Aces, when Collier went down in the third quarter with a right ankle injury and didn’t return to the game.

On Monday, the day before Minnesota takes on Seattle to wrap up a two-game roadtrip, ESPN’s Kendra Andrews reported that Collier will miss “at least two weeks” with a right ankle sprain and will be re-evaluated in two weeks.

Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images

It would not be surprising to see Minnesota hold out Collier and let her get back to full strength and avoid pushing anything in terms of further injury. Especially with the Lynx currently holding a 5.5-game lead on New York for the top spot in the league.