“‘Only the losers complain about the refs’… ‘poor leadership’… ‘she doesn’t care’… ‘said Caitlin should be thankful’…” That was an endless list of scathing attacks by the No. 2 MVP of the WNBA right before the finals. Naturally, it drew reactions from everyone in and around the league. Veterans like Sophie Cunningham, to young stars like CC, Angel Reese, and Paige Bueckers, openly showed their support for the Minnesota Lynx star. Now, however, the absence of support from a few key names has become glaringly obvious.

WNBA analyst Rachel A. DeMita recently hosted an ‘impromptu’ episode of her ‘Courtside Club’ show. During the same time, she highlighted the list of players who are representatives of the Women’s National Basketball Players Association (WNBPA). Chicago Sky’s Rachel Banam and Ariel Atkins are yet to come out in support of Collier. But what caught attention is that even one of Clark’s teammates has yet to speak out.

“Yes, we have heard players be super vocal, but even if you look at…. okay, New York. Sabrina Ionescu is the voice for the New York team. If we look at the Indiana Fever, it’s Aliyah Boston, and then the alternate is Lexie Hull,” said DeMira. “Now, Lexie Hull was somebody who came out and supported Phee, and said that she made a lot of good points. Aliyah Boston was someone who kind of skirted around these questions and tried to make light of everything.”

Over the last few days, Aliyah Boston has weighed in on a number of things. She wrote a heartwarming comment after free agent Chloe Bibby highlighted her exit from the Indiana Fever. She sent a warning to the rival teams after the Indiana Fever were eliminated by saying, “Be ready. Be ready.” However, the one thing she hasn’t commented on is Napheesa Collier’s remarks.

It strikes even more because Napheesa Collier is the association’s vice-president. Also, the whole Cathy Engelbert-Caitlin Clark controversy originated due to the discussion between the commissioner and the Lynx star over a pay hike for WNBA players. So, it seemed expected that every prominent player would stand with Collier. So, if not Boston, other players from the Indiana Fever have already spoken out.

Sophie Cunningham took a shot at the commissioner by saying, “The disrespect is just crazy to me” during one episode of her podcast. During a pre-game interview, Lexie Hull said, “It’s exciting to see players speak out. And speak up about what’s going on in our league. I know you’re talking about Phee’s (Napheesa) interview, and when it comes down to it, I agree with everything she said.”

Additionally, the Fever head coach, Stephanie White, said, “I have a lot of respect for Phee. I’m thankful that we have strong women that are willing to say the things that matter and say the things that will move the needle for change.” Even Clark came out in support of Phee (though she avoided commenting on the comments made about her). If so many big names have spoken out, then what is stopping Boston?

Aliyah Boston’s silence might not have anything to do with Clark at all. After all, the Fever star and Napheesa Collier are not necessarily on good terms. They had a heated exchange back in early July, when things got intense during a Fever-Lynx matchup. Furthermore, Aliyah Boston is the reason why the Lynx’s power forward tore her ankle ligaments.

Fans might remember that memorable Game 3, between the Minnesota Lynx and the Phoenix Mercury, during which Alyssa Thomas stole the ball from Napheesa Collier near the Lynx’s three-point line and converted a layup, but also had her lower body collide with Collier’s left knee, causing the latter’s ankle to roll.

Boston’s silence might spark one debate, but it doesn’t make a difference to the overall situation. After all, tensions remain high between Collier and Engelbert. From the looks of it, it will affect a suitable negotiation with the team as well.

Napheesa Collier takes a tough call against WNBA commissioner as rift deepens

It is reported that Napheesa Collier has canceled a meeting with the WNBA commissioner that was set to take place in the coming days. According to ‘Underdog NBA’, this action was undertaken after Engelbert’s news conference on Friday, “pretty much pushed the relationship beyond repair.” After Napheesa Collier dropped the alleged truth bombs during her own exit interview, Cathy Engelbert explained things from her side in a presser held before Game 1 of the 2025 WNBA Finals.

During the same time, the commissioner said, “Obviously, I did not make those comments. Caitlin has been a transformational player in this league. She’s been a great representative of the game. She’s brought tens of millions of new fans to the game.” If that wasn’t enough, Engelbert also sympathized with the star player’s recent injury troubles and applauded the Indiana Fever for getting to the Semi-Finals and putting out a good fight despite the team’s injury troubles.

In the end, Engelbert added, “There’s a lot of inaccuracies reported out there, and I certainly did not say that.” From the looks of it, Collier did not believe her. Neither did a bunch of netizens. After the presser, X was filled with sentiments that said “Cathy is so full of s—, it took her 3 days to deny those statements,” and “It seems to me that Cathy Engelbert does not get it. Players no longer trust her leadership, and it took her how many days to deny what Phee said?”

This whole situation has the WNBA world on edge. Everyone is speaking out, except for Aliyah Boston. Whether that silence eventually cracks or not is something that remains to be seen.