Napheesa Collier’s Olympic Dream Hangs in the Balance as Scary Injury Forces Her Out

The Olympics is just around the corner with only a handful of games remaining before the break. One of the worst things that can happen to any Team USA player at this point is suffering an injury. Unfortunately, that is exactly what happened as Napheesa Collier limped her way out of the Target Center Arena's floor. Apart from the first consecutive loss of the season, Cheryl Reeve, the head coach for the Minnesota Lynx and the Team USA may have more bad news.

With the game clock reading 2:38 remaining for the third quarter, Phee, on the far wing, was watching Courtney Williams bring Minnesota to a tie with her possession. Just then, as she made a cut to the basket to try and create some space for her teammate, Collier limped through the lane . Immediately, the 3x WNBA All-Star called for a timeout. After sitting on the bench for some time, she left for the locker room with the Lynx Head Athletic Trainer Chuck Barta. The officiating crew ruled it as a non-contact injury.

In the final quarter, the team announced that the 27-year-old forward was out for the game. She is also ruled out for the upcoming game against the Washington Mystics following her left foot injury. Nothing more is disclosed of the same yet. In her 25 minutes on the floor, Napheesa Collier had 9 points and 6 rebounds. She capped the night with an assist, 2 steals, and 2 blocks. After the Lynx leader took off, the Sun took the lead for good.

Despite Minnesota's best of efforts, they could not get the better of the visiting Connecticut. In the end, the Connecticut Sun took the close 78-73 victory. Indeed, tonight was a heavyweight matchup in Minneapolis as two of the best defensive teams in the league locked horns. As for Collier, we do not know if she will be able to fly to Paris just yet. But her run in the league so far would only justify her presence on the big stage.

Napheesa Collier: Making history on her terms The sixth lottery pick in 2019 is an up-and-coming athlete, swiftly making her name known to the new fans of the WNBA. Napheesa Collier pushed her team to win over the New York Liberty at their home in the Commissioner's Cup . The WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert also named her the MVP for the tournament for all her efforts. Currently, the UConn alum is a strong challenger for A'ja Wilson in the MVP run. Moreover, she is also the top runner for the Defensive Player of the Year.

At the midway point for the Lynx, Napheesa Collier is one of the top runners in the league with 20.6 ppg. She is going 46.9% from the field and 30.9% from beyond the arc. Additionally, she is also logging 10. 4 rebounds, 3.8 assists, 2.2 steals, and 1.4 blocks per game. The team will certainly hope that she does not stay off the court for too long as they still continue to lead the Western Conference despite the 2-game losing streak.

These are very crucial days for any Olympian and hearing an injury update is not what they want to hear. While the upcoming game is not as big for the Commissioner's Cup champions, only time will tell if the Lynx will be able to break their losing streak without Napheesa Collier at the helm.

Stay tuned for more such updates, and to follow what Shaq's ex-agent, Leonard Armato, has to say about the infamous Shaq-Kobe feud, Caitlin Clark's Olympic snub, and more, watch this video.