WNBA star Napheesa Collier rips league, commissioner over lack of leadership

Drama is heating up on and off the court as the WNBA playoffs get underway.

Some players are calling out the league's leadership on a string of issues, including officiating, pay and accountability.

Minnesota Lynx star Napheesa Collier delivered a blistering assessment of the WNBA and its commissioner on Tuesday as she sat in front of the media with a prepared statement, disclosing private conversations she said she had with Cathy Engelbert that portrayed her as a leader who lacks accountability.

Collier spoke for more than four minutes on topics ranging from Caitlin Clark - and her value to the league - to inconsistent officiating, which she feels Engelbert and the WNBA haven't addressed.

"We have the best league in the world. We have the best fans in the world. But we have the worst leadership in the world," the runner-up for MVP said. "Year after year, the only thing that remains consistent is the lack of accountability from our leaders."

Collier blasted Engelbert as a leader who is insensitive to the current realities of being a WNBA player. Her remarks came as the WNBA players' union, for which Collier is a vice president, prepares to engage the league in highly contentious collective bargaining that will set the parameters for a league trying to keep up with its unprecedented growth and global interest.

"If I didn't know exactly what the job entailed, maybe I wouldn't feel this way," Collier said. "But unfortunately for them, I do believe we serve a league that has shown they think championship coaches and Hall of Fame players are dispensable, and that's fine. It's professional sports, but I will not stand quietly by and allow different standards to be applied at the league level."

Engelbert responded to Collier in a statement not long after the media session, saying she was disheartened by "how Napheesa characterized our conversations," but was committed to her job and "will not waver."

"I have the utmost respect for Napheesa Collier and for all the players in the WNBA," Engelbert wrote. "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."

The Lynx were eliminated from the playoffs on Sunday in a Game 4 that Collier missed with an ankle injury and her coach, Cheryl Reeve, missed because she was suspended for her behavior toward officials in Game 3.

Collier accused the league of censorship by handing out fines to players and coaches who speak out against officials.

Lynx head coach Cheryl Reeve was hit with a record $15,000 fine for criticizing referees after Collier's injury.

Reeve received what was believed to be the heftiest fine for an individual coach or player in league history, according to a person familiar with the penalty who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because an official announcement hadn't been made yet.

Collier said she hadn't heard from Engelbert following her injury, which happened on the play that prompted Reeve to take to the court and scream at officials before her staff and players held her back in an attempt to defuse the situation.

"Not one call, not one text. Instead, the only outreach has come from her No. 2, telling my agent that she doesn't believe physical play contributed to injuries. That is infuriating," Collier said. "It's the perfect example of the tone deaf, dismissive approach that our leaders always seem to take."

Collier said that in a private conversation with Engelbert, the commissioner of seven years told her WNBA star Clark should be grateful to the league for her earnings and endorsement deals, which stemmed from Clark's record-breaking college career that saw her become the most polarizing player in women's basketball history.

"This past February, I sat across from (Engelbert) and asked how she planned to address the officiating issues in our league," Collier said. "Her response was, 'Well, only the losers complain about the refs.' I also asked how she planned to fix the fact that players like (Clark, Angel Reese and Paige Bueckers), who are clearly driving massive revenue for the league and are making so little for their first four years.

"Her response was, '(Clark) should be grateful. She makes $16 million off the court because without the platform that the WNBA gives her, she wouldn't make anything.' And in that same conversation, she told me, 'Players should be on their knees, thanking their lucky stars for the media rights deal that I got them.'"

The commissioner responded in a statement saying in part, "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."

New York Liberty fans in Midtown spoke out against the WNBA.

"I think across like all sports, there should be some kind of consistency with the officials and the rules. I just don't know how they're going to fix it," a fan said.

Collier, besides playing in the WNBA, is a co-founder of Unrivaled - a three-on-three women's basketball league that plays in the winter and features WNBA stars. Many of those players seek offseason leagues to play in to supplement their WNBA salaries, which are capped at about $250,000 for a supermax contract. Earnings for top rookies are capped at around $78,000.

WNBA players for years relied on going abroad in the offseason to find those leagues, but security and quality-of-life concerns that were brought to light by the imprisonment of Brittney Griner in Russia paved the way for leagues such as Unrivaled to provide a safer alternative.

Collier, in the end, said she just wants the league to do a better job protecting its players.

Collier has support from a number of players, including the New York Liberty forward Isabelle Harrison who took to social media to say, "standing with Phee."

Experts say pressure is mounting as the deadline for a new Collective Bargaining Agreement approaches Oct. 31.

"You're seeing the value of franchises going up, you're seeing the public interest going up, the players do understand they are in a very good position," Mark Conrad, Fordham University Director of Sports Business, said.

Some WNBA fans believe the players deserve to be heard.

"We have friends that are in season pass holders for Liberty. So they are bringing in audiences. So why not pay them?" a fan said.

The Associated Press contributed to this article.