Not even the officials are safe on Minnesota Lynx head coach Cheryl Reeve’s radar. Following the 93-81 loss against the New York Liberty, Reeve revealed that, just like their players and their opponents, coaches also have an idea of the stats of the officials.
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However, with this knowledge, Reeve also understands that relying on a referee’s history to win a game is not the right strategy. Rather, teams must focus strictly on their own execution, effort, and game plan, despite whatever opinion they have about the WNBA’s officiating.
“We do analytics on officials too, and they do it on themselves so we know tendencies just like players. Officials have tendencies, but doesn’t mean what you can count on in a game.”
“I think you stay out of the business of depending on anything that’s outside of your control,” Reeve said via Lynx beat writer and reporter Andrew Dukowitz on X.
However, referee analytics isn’t the only thing the WNBA does when it comes to gathering data on officials. Back in July, The Athletic’s WNBA writer Annie Costabile said on the No Offseason podcast that coaches like Reeve provide direct feedback about officials to the league.
“There’s also a texting service that all head coaches are prompted to engage with and give feedback on the three officials after every game.”
Meanwhile, Reeve’s latest comment comes on the heels of the type of game Lynx rookie sensation Olivia Miles had. It was a frustrating night for the MVP candidate, but one look at her stats will not answer that question. Although Miles produced 20 points, eight rebounds, five assists, and two steals, her efficiency, which is usually one of the best in the game, fell flat.
Miles struggled in her shooting, going 5-for-18 from the field and 0-for-3 from outside the arc. Moreover, half of her points came from the charity stripe. This is because Miles felt the wrath of the 2024 WNBA champions’ physicality, something she revealed after the game that she had never experienced before.
More notably, though, Miles called out the referees and got brutally honest about the shifting whistles and physical contact she’s facing.
“They were calling it one way at the beginning of the season, and now it’s like a free-for-all, I guess. And I’m trying to adjust back, and I have to do so a little bit more quickly. It’s frustrating at times when you feel like you’re getting hounded everywhere, and pushed off your spots, and thrown on the ground and stuff,” Miles told Dukowitz.
“But ultimately, we can’t rely on the refs to win us the game. And you gotta go strong; you gotta finish your contact.”
Both Miles and Reeve highlighted the same point, that is not relying on officiating to win games. This is not the first time Reeve has talked about officiating in a negative light this season.
Following the physical matchup against the Atlanta Dream before the World Cup break, the Lynx lost 89-81. Reeve pointed out the punishing physical tone the Dream used against her team after the game and was adamant that the Dream were being illegally physical and the officials did not care about it in the slightest.
“We’ve got to handle physicality, we’ve got to toughen up. And we have to exploit the physicality; we aren’t exploiting it. And we’re being guarded in a way that should be illegal, but we’re not putting the referees in a position to see it,” Reeve said during the post game presser.
Regardless, Cheryl Reeve and the Lynx now have to worry about securing their place as the top seed. With three losses in a row, the Lynx’s record now stands at 31-10, officially entering double digits in losses. They are closely followed by Natalie Nakase’s Golden State Valkyries, who just beat expansion side Portland Fire 82-66, that too without the help of French star Gabby Williams.
The Valkyries extend their record to 30-11, and with three games left to play for both sides, it will be interesting to see who enters the WNBA playoffs as the top seed.