The 2026 WNBA season will begin on May 8, a welcome sight after concerns over a possible delay during extended negotiations about a new collective bargaining agreement (CBA) in the offseason.
While she was not alone in her critique, Minnesota Lynx star and WNBA Players Association vice president Napheesa Collier was among the more vocal players about what her peers deserved and the changes that needed to come to the league. She had a viral exit interview after the 2025 season ended, in which she made very public criticisms of the league and its leadership under commissioner Cathy Engelbert.
Collier didn’t hold back, reading a prepared statement, saying that the league was “tone-deaf,” “dismissive,” and concerned more with “control and power” than the players in the league. Collier opened her press conference with a four-minute statement of the state of the league, adding, “Right now, we have the worst leadership in the world.”
Napheesa Collier’s full statement today, where she challenged Commissioner Cathy Engelbert and the WNBA with directness and stunning detail we rarely hear from active players. Worth listening to every word. pic.twitter.com/IRTvTc52EA
— Malika Andrews (@malika_andrews) September 30, 2025
On May 6, NPR released a sit-down interview with Collier. Overall, she discussed her new contract, the upcoming season and her future in basketball, but she also took a second to reflect on the negotiations and her comments from last fall.
When NPR reminded her that she had accused the WNBA of having “the worst leadership in the world,” Collier reframed her opinion, saying, “Thinking about the state of the world right now, I think that’s a little dramatic.”
The Lynx center went on to add, “I think it was something that needed to happen, and it was something that furthered our CBA [collective bargaining agreement] negotiations.”
Though Collier’s criticism of the league last fall was scathing, there was an outpouring of support from her peers at the time. Indiana Fever guard Lexie Hull said, “When it comes down to it, I think I agree with everything she said. We’re at a really important time in the league, and changes need to be made. And so you’re seeing [Collier] talk about that, and really proud of her for making that statement today.”
Fever head coach Stephanie White also applauded Collier’s statement, saying, “She understands the business side of it as well as the basketball side of it. nd I’m thankful that we have strong women that are willing to say the things that matter and say the things that will move the needle for change.”
The WNBA and the Players’ Association agreed to terms on a new CBA on March 20, highlighted by a new revenue-sharing system, a salary cap increase, salary growth over time and more investments in players’ lives after basketball.
Collier will miss the first month of the season due to injuries to each ankle, which required surgery. She is currently playing on a one-year, $1.4 million supermax deal with the Lynx, and is set to hit free agency again this upcoming offseason.