Minnesota Lynx star Napheesa Collier had a breakout season that put her in the MVP conversation, achieving only the second 50-40-90 season in WNBA history. “It had only been done once before and that player was the MVP of the league and Phee deserves that same recognition…. I think that’s something that voters should look at,” said head coach Cheryl Reeve. In the end, however, A’ja Wilson took home the award, leaving the WNBA world divided and many questioning whether Collier was unfairly overlooked.

And somehow, the word “Unrivaled” has found its way into the debate, and not for reasons you’d think.

Napheesa Collier, along with Breanna Stewart, founded Unrivaled back in July 2023. The purpose of this new professional women’s league was to give WNBA players an option to play during the league’s off-season to earn some extra money in a league where salaries feel like peanuts.

The three-on-three basketball league soon found tremendous success, as the coverage reached more than 11.9 million viewers across TNT and truTV. According to the league, it delivered the 10 most-watched women’s basketball games ever on TNT Sports’ networks.

Still, is there a chance that the WNBA feels threatened by Collier? And did that influence her MVP snub? Some fans certainly believe so.

WNBA Fans Question A’ja Wilson Winning MVP over Napheesa Collier

One social media user wrote, “Phee got iced out of the end of season individual awards. I’m sorry to put on my conspiracy hat, but I feel like her starting Unrivaled has something to do with it.” The netizen also added the viral ‘Dexter’ meme featuring Sgt. James Doakes looking suspicious. However, as of now, there have been no reports from official sources to indicate that the WNBA allegedly holds a grudge against Napheesa Collier and therefore denied her the MVP award.

Still, another individual wrote, “I’m sorry, what? Napheesa Collier closed at -1000 to win this award when the season ended. She averaged 22/7/3 while leading the Lynx to their best season in the history of the franchise, and the number 1 overall seed in the W. Absolutely egregious man.”

There is no denying that the Minnesota Lynx star had a breakout season, but A’ja Wilson outperformed Napheesa Collier in several key stats: games played, points and rebounds per game, blocks per game, and narrowly edged her in 3-point percentage, while matching her in steals. Despite the Las Vegas Aces being largely overlooked for much of the season, after a 111-58 loss to the Lynx on August 2, Wilson sparked a 16-0 run to lead her team. That heavily shifted the odds in Wilson’s favor.

And, so it happened that A’ja Wilson earned 51 of 72 first-place votes and 21 second-place votes, totaling 657 points. Napheesa Collier trailed with 534 points, while Alyssa Thomas received 391, Allisha Gray 180, and Kelsey Mitchell 93.

One individual wrote, “After the season Napheesa just had, there is no way she ONLY had 18 first place votes. It seems like a vendetta because of Unrivaled. Iykyk”. Another seemed to agree, bringing in even UConn into the equation: “Unrivaled and UConn .. double whammy”. 

The jab at UConn probably comes from their nickname, the “UConn Mafia”, a nod to the tight-knit network of former players who’ve gone on to coaching roles, especially in college basketball. Yet, whether or not her ties to Unrivaled played a role, Collier has accepted the outcome. In an interview with SB Nation’s Noa Dalzell, the power forward reflected on the MVP results, saying, “The team is way bigger than me. Whatever my personal goals are, I’m here for the team, and right now, we’re focused on a championship. So, it was easy not to think about that.”

Her coach doesn’t really agree, though. “Voters, just like [with WNBA] Defensive Player of the Year, voters did what they did. And we’re focused on game one,” Reeve said, per an X post from Dukowitz.

One social media user let their true emotions out by writing “Bu—-!!!!!! The Aces was garbage as f— half the year dawg Napheesa Collier got snubbed. A’Ja a great dominant player but how does the BEST player on the number 1 seed who is the 2nd player in WNBA HISTORY to have a 50/40/90 season not get the MVP??? This s— is wicked”.

Well, people likely connect her snub to her Unrivaled ties for just one reason.

Starting a league of her own, while still playing for the WNBA, meant that there was a conflict of interest. Fan theories started brewing, claiming Collier and Stewart were using their WNBPA board roles and Unrivaled league ownership to profit from a potential WNBA lockout. Hence, the claims about the league feeling threatened.

Collier, however, hit back at the critics by taking to social media and writing, “So let me get this straight…. While everyone else was enjoying fireworks, you were thinking about how me and & Stewie of all people are conspiring to force a lockout that would result in less money year-round for WNBA players??”

Still, not all agreed with the conspiracy theory, as one wrote, “Horrible conspiracy, has nothing to do with it”. True, as another pointed to the panel of sportswriters and broadcasters to say that “media voters don’t care about that”.

Finally, one user brought out a fresh perspective, writing, “Napheesa Collier got no choice, but to win that championship this year. You can’t dominate the regular season just to lose out on MVP twice, the WNBA Finals, Unrivaled championship & the commissioner’s cup back to back to back to back.”

The Minnesota Lynx came closer to success on that part. The team recently won Game 1 of its Semi-Finals series against the Phoenix Mercury. Despite the Mercury holding a 7-point lead in the first half, the Minnesota Lynx outscored their rivals by 20 in the second half to win Game 1 by an 82-69 score. Napheesa Collier herself made 18 points, along with 9 rebounds, and 2 assists, through 8 -16 (50.0%) field goals, 2-6 (33.3%) 3-pointers, and 0-0 (0%) free throws.