Napheesa Collier's honest admission on Lynx's heartbreaking WNBA Finals defeat

10/23/2024 08:16 AM

The Minnesota Lynx are heartbroken that they could not get a win in Game 5 of the 2024 WNBA Finals. Minnesota was so close to winning its fifth championship in franchise history. However, a controversial foul call late in the fourth quarter gave the New York Liberty life. New York forced overtime and ended up winning its first ever championship.

This is still a hard pill to swallow for some players and coaches on the Lynx. That includes superstar Napheesa Collier.

Collier spoke with the media on Tuesday and shared that she won’t ever get over how Game 5 ended for the Lynx.

“I mean, it motivates me to never try to have the game that close again,” Collier said. “Where it could be decided by whoever it was decided by. So, yeah.”

Collier is clearly taking a subtle shot and the WNBA officiating in Game 5. Collier’s takeaway is a good one though — if you dominate hard enough during regulation, the other team cannot force overtime.

Lynx coach Cheryl Reeve blasts WNBA officiating in Finals heartbreaker

Lynx head coach Cheryl Reeve did not hold back when blasting the WNBA officiating of Game 5.

Reeve believes that the game was stolen from Minnesota by calling a phantom foul that gave Liberty star Breanna Stewart a chance to tie the game in its waning minutes.

"It's a shame that officiating had such a hand in a series like this. We have got to change our challenge rules. The officials to end the game should have a third party, because that was not a foul. That call should've been reversed," Reeve said after the game. "If we would've turned that clip in, they would've told us it was marginal contact, no foul guaranteed. The three people that are on the game need a third party to let them know, that decided the game."

Reeve does not care that the media may paint her as crying foul. She believes she is doing right by her team by raising the issue.

"I know all the headlines will be Reeve cries foul. Bring it on, because this shit was stolen from us. Bring it on. You shouldn't have to overcome to that extent, this shit ain't that hard," said the Lynx head coach.

Ultimately, Cheryl Reeve just wants the WNBA to make consistent officiating calls, especially in high-leverage situations like Game 5 of the Finals.

"Be consistent, every team asks for that. Three games this series, we're talking about the same damn thing. It just doesn't feel right that you lose a series with that level of discrepancy. This sucks, this is for a championship, let them decide it. This isn't that hard," Reeve concluded.

It will be interesting to see if the WNBA decides to officially address the officiating in Game 5 during the offseason.

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