Napheesa Collier calls out Cathy Engelbert, WNBA leadership

Collier, who multiple sources familiar with her actions told The IX Basketball she was speaking on her own and not in her capacity as a member of the WNBPA’s Executive Committee, spoke for more than four minutes at the beginning of her media availability.

“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. “Since I’ve been in the league, you’ve heard the constant concerns about officiating, and it has now reached levels of inconsistency that plague our sport and undermine the integrity in which it operates. Whether the league cares about the health of the players is one thing, but to also not care about the product we put on the floor is truly self sabotage year after year, the only thing that remains consistent is a lack of accountability from our leaders.”

The WNBA did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Collier’s statement.

UPDATE, 3:12 PM ET: The WNBPA sent The IX Basketball a statement which read: “Napheesa Collier is an outstanding leader and Officer of this Union. When Phee speaks, people listen: we are confident her words today speak to the feelings and experiences of many, if not most or all of our members. The leaders of the league and its teams would benefit from listening to her powerful statement.”

Collier continued to speak about the league not being able to play players what they are worth due to one thing: Sustainability.

“What’s truly unsustainable is keeping a good product on the floor while allowing officials to lose control of games. Fans see it every night. Coaches both winning and losing, pointed out every night in pregame and postgame media, yet leadership just issues fines and looks the other way. They ignore the issues that everyone inside the game is begging to be fixed. So that is negligence.”

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The statement comes after a heated matchup in Game 3 of the semifinals against the Mercury. Collier suffered an ankle injury during a collision with Alyssa Thomas after Thomas stole the ball from her. This resulted in Minnesota head coach Cheryl Reeve running onto the court and having to be restrained by assistant coaches and players, leading to a second technical foul and an ejection. 

Following the loss, Reeve commented on the officiating during the game. “If this is what the league wants, OK, but I want to call for a change of leadership at the league level when it comes to officiating.” She continued, “The officiating crew that we had tonight, for the leadership to deem those three people semifinal-playoff worthy, it’s fucking malpractice.”

She added, “We were trying to play through it, trying not to make excuses. But one of the best players in the league, she had zero free throws and she had five fouls. She had her shoulder pulled out and finished the game with her leg being taken out.”

Reeve was fined for her comments, aggressive acts towards game officials on the court, failure to leave the court in a timely manner, inappropriate comments made to fans while leaving the court, and comments made in the post-game press conference. She was also suspended one game, which ended up being the Lynx’s final game of the season, a Game 4 loss to Phoenix.

Coaches Becky Hammon of the Las Vegas Aces and Stephanie White of the Indiana Fever were also fined for speaking out in support of Reeve, The Athletic’s Sabreena Merchant first reported.

Collier recounted that while playing in the Unrivaled season this past February, she sat down with Engelbert and asked her what she was planning to do about the officiating issues in the WNBA. Collier said that Engelbert responded, “Well, only the losers complain about refs.”

Collier’s statement went far beyond officiating, however. Collier said she asked the commissioner how she planned to fix the fact that notable players like Caitlin Clark, Angel Reese, and Paige Bueckers were driving a spike in revenue for the league but were making so little in their first years as professional basketball players. Collier said that Engelbert responded by saying that Caitlin should be grateful because she make so much money off the court, and without the platform that the WNBA gives her, she wouldn’t be making anything.

“And in that same conversation, she told me players should be on their knees thanking their lucky stars for the media rights deal I got them. That’s the mentality driving our league from the top. We go to battle every day to protect a shield that doesn’t value us. The league believes it succeeds despite its players, not because of them,” Collier said.

Following Collier’s injury, she said she received calls, texts, and well wishes from players in the league. However, she did not hear from Engelbert. Collier said Engelbert had told her agent that she doesn’t believe physical play is contributing to injuries.

“That is infuriating, and it’s the perfect example of the tone deaf, dismissive approach that our leaders always seem to take,” Collier said. “For too long, I have tried to have these conversations in private, but it’s clear there is no intention of accepting there’s a problem. The league has made it clear it isn’t about innovation, it isn’t about collaboration, it’s about control and power.”

UPDATE, 3:40 PM ET: Cathy Engelbert issues official statement: “I have the utmost respect for Napheesa Collier and for all the players in the WNBA. Together we have all worked tirelessly to transform this league. My focus remains on ensuring a bright future for the players and the WNBA, including collaborating on how we continue to elevate the game. I am disheartened by how Napheesa characterized our conversations and league leadership, but even when our perspectives differ, my commitment to the players and to this work will not waver.”

Howard Megdal contributed reporting to this story.