The Minnesota Lynx open the postseason as the No. 1 seed after tying a league record with 34 wins. Their opponent is the Golden State Valkyries, who became the first expansion franchise in WNBA history to reach the playoffs in its inaugural season.
Minnesota, with four championships and an MVP candidate at the center of its roster, has been the WNBA’s most consistent force all year. Golden State, still in its first season together, has leaned on energy, pace and perimeter shooting to carve out an unlikely playoff berth. The two sides met four times in the regular season, with the Lynx winning all four, capped by a 72-53 victory on Sept. 11 that underscored their defensive dominance.
The Lynx held Golden State under 75 points in three of four games, repeatedly showing the ability to disrupt the Valkyries’ 3-point attack. With Sunday’s opener arriving just days after their last meeting, Lynx head coach Cheryl Reeve said both teams are entering the series with a clear understanding of what’s ahead.
“We just played each other a week or so,” Reeve said. “So, this is our third time in a short period of time. I don’t think there’s any surprises. We’re each going to try to execute a little better. We’re each going to find some things that we feel like can give us an advantage.”
Collier Leads the Lynx
Minnesota’s title pursuit revolves around Napheesa Collier, who became just the second player in WNBA history to record a 50-40-90 season while averaging more than 20 points. For Collier, the accomplishment was part of a larger personal challenge laid out at the start of the year.
“It’s a goal that Cheryl gave me in the beginning of the year,” Collier said. “I’m a very goal-oriented person, so when I accomplish those, it just feels good.”
Her teammates see her influence as the heartbeat of the Lynx. Guard Natisha Hiedeman, who has been a leading candidate for Sixth Player of the Year, said Collier’s consistency is the foundation.
“Without her we’re not the Minnesota Lynx,” Hiedeman said. “She deserves this. She works hard for this. I’m just super happy she was able to accomplish this.”
Hiedeman also pointed to the team’s bench production as a difference-maker in the postseason. “It’s like having eight starters instead of five,” she said. “That’s what allows teams to get to the promised land — depth is what makes us so great.”
The Lynx are also monitoring the status of guard DiJonai Carrington, who has missed four games with a shoulder injury. Reeve said her return could add another dimension.
“She’s getting more confident for sure,” Reeve said. “There’s a physicality and aggression at both ends of the floor that I think is valuable and certainly the depth, as we talked about, we need that.”
Valkyries Search for Breakthrough
Golden State’s offensive identity has been clear from the start — space the floor and launch threes. The team led the WNBA in attempts and makes but struggled with efficiency, finishing 11th at 32.5 percent.
Valkyries head coach Natalie Nakase said the team will stick to the same identity that carried it into the postseason, even against the WNBA’s top seed. She stressed that the formula is about trusting the system, rather than reinventing it for the playoffs.
“We just have to make shots,” Nakase said. “I know the capability of our players. We work on our threes all the time. So I’m taking this as a positive. Playing somebody now and then having a good look — it’s not like we have to completely change a ton of things.”
Kaila Charles said the team views the series as a chance to correct small mistakes that turned close games into losses.
“If we get the extra stops, if we get the rebounds, if we just hit a few more shots, it would have been a different game,” Charles said. “It was a good learning curve to just see the stuff that they’re gonna run, how we can defend it, how we can manipulate the game to our benefit.”
Veronica Burton pointed to the team’s resilience despite four losses to Minnesota. She said the Valkyries believe their defense and effort can keep them in games if shots start falling.
“They’re the number one team in the league for a reason,” Burton said. “They’re incredibly connected and you can see that there’s experience there. But we know every single team in this league is beatable. We can compete with anyone. We brought it to four and we shot absolutely terribly. So we know that we’re right there and the playoffs are a clean slate.”
When asked about the perception of Golden State as an underdog entering the matchup with Minnesota, Nakase made it clear that she doesn’t get caught up in labels. For her, the focus is on results and how her team has built its identity around resilience and proving people wrong.
“I just like winning. I like to do whatever it takes to win,” Nakase said. “At this moment we’re facing Minnesota. We just played them again. I take that as a positive because you just got reps of what works, what doesn’t. We get to stay here. I just try to pick all the positives — underdog or not. I’ve been underdog my whole life.”
Nakase added that the mentality has spread throughout the Valkyries’ roster.
“I think all of our players have that mentality, too,” she said. “They like to be doubted, they like to prove people wrong, and I think that’s what’s connected us, too. That’s the beauty of our season — we’ve been connecting on so many different levels of past experiences, trauma, everything.”
Prediction
The Valkyries will rely on hot shooting and defensive toughness to challenge Minnesota. Their best chance to extend the series comes in Game 2 at SAP Center in San Jose, where home energy and a streak from the perimeter could tilt momentum.
Minnesota has the league’s best defense, an MVP candidate in Collier and the depth to win games in multiple ways. That combination leaves the Lynx well-positioned to advance quickly, with a sweep the most likely outcome.
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