Napheesa Collier expected to miss 4-6 months after ankle surgery

Cassidy Hettesheimer, The Minnesota Star Tribune on Jan 1, 2026

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MINNEAPOLIS — Lynx star Napheesa Collier will undergo surgery on both ankles, sidelining her for the second season of Unrivaled and potentially the start of the 2026 WNBA season.

Both Collier and Unrivaled, the 3-on-3 basketball league Collier helped co-found, announced the surgery Thursday. Unrivaled stated that Collier’s expected recovery timeline is four to six months. The Unrivaled season begins Jan. 5.

“Following additional consultation during the Unrivaled preseason and after exhausting all options to progress rehabilitation of injuries sustained in the WNBA season, a joint team of medical staff determined that surgery on both left and right ankles would be necessary for Lunar Owls BC’s Napheesa Collier and she will be unable to participate in the upcoming Unrivaled season,” the league said in a press release.

The WNBA’s regular season typically begins in early May, though the 2026 season’s schedule has yet to be released as the WNBA players association and the league negotiate a new collective bargaining agreement.

Collier, who is an unrestricted free agent this offseason, was a favorite to win last WNBA season’s MVP award until a sprained right ankle in early August sidelined her for three weeks. She finished second in MVP voting and earned All-WNBA honors for the third consecutive year but saw her career-best season end with another ankle injury — this time, her left ankle, in the final minute of the Lynx’s Game 3 loss to the Phoenix Mercury in the WNBA semifinals.

“I have fought hard over the last few months to be back with my Owls and was devastated to be told by my team of doctors that surgery was the best path forward,” Collier said in a statement posted to Instagram.

In mid-December, Collier told reporters that she was hopeful that rehabilitating her injuries would not require surgery and she would be playing again in January.

Both Minnesota coach Cheryl Reeve and Collier herself criticized the officiating regarding the steal and ensuing contact that led to Collier’s injury against Phoenix, calling for more consistent officiating to protect players’ safety.

Collier was the MVP of Unrivaled’s inaugural season last winter.

“I will continue to work relentlessly with the rest of the players and our staff to push our sport forward and raise the bar for women’s basketball,” Collier said. “I will be back at full strength and soon as possible and ready to continue where I left off.”