The Minnesota Lynx remained at the top of the league for most of the 2026 WNBA regular season and finished as league leaders. However, they didn’t look like a dominant team on both ends of the floor against the No. 8 seed New York Liberty in Game 1 of the first-round series. While it was a disappointing loss for the Lynx that puts them a step closer to elimination, it was also a big reality check for rookie Olivia Miles, who was named the Kia Rookie of the Year by a unanimous vote just a day after the loss. 

“When you’re experiencing the WNBA postseason for the first time, where the physicality is ratcheted up that much more, where the stakes are so incredibly high, sometimes it takes some time to ramp up to that,” WNBA analyst Caroline Fenton said on the Yahoo Sports YouTube Channel.

“We saw that kind of rear its ugly head for Olivia Miles last night.”

Miles had a seamless transition from college basketball to the WNBA. She led her team in points and assists while spearheading her team’s offense. However, on Saturday, it seemed as if the playoff basketball was proving too heavy for the rookie. She scored only 11 points and shot 3-of-12 from the field, including 1-of-4 from the 3-point line. Despite being the Lynx’s primary playmaker, Miles recorded only one assist in 30 minutes. 

“Olivia Miles is still a rookie. I know that she’s an MVP-contending player. I know that Olivia Miles is the unanimous rookie of the year [and she] largely carried this Lynx team to the number one overall seed, but she is still a rookie,” Fenton added. 

She was among the MVP conversation before the regular season ended as well, drawing comparisons with the only player to win ROTY and MVP in the same year, Candace Parker. And it was for good reason because she had one of the best rookie seasons in WNBA history, averaging  19.8 points, 4.7 rebounds, 6.0 assists, and 1.3 steals per game. She shot 49.2% from the field and 38.8% from the deep. 

However, when the Lynx needed her the most, Miles found the pressure of her first postseason game bearing down. The WNBA rookie admitted that she was “nervous as ever” during the game with so much on the line, and the jitters reflected in her stats. She had four turnovers and four personal fouls. 

However, after the game, head coach Cheryl Reeve defended her rookie. 

“(Miles is) feeling it right now, but this is what we expected. It’s not easy,” Reeve said in her postgame presser. “And there’s a lot that goes with being a really good player. Some of it is being targeted and focused and try to put you in you in tougher spots. And she’s a smart player. She’ll figure it out.”

Miles played three games against the Liberty during the regular season and averaged 19.0 points while shooting just 32% from the field. The pattern matched in Game 1.

“If the Lynx want to make this a series… they have to clean up the fouls, and Olivia Miles has to play a bigger role in Game 3,” Fenton concluded. 

Without Miles, the Lynx are still a good team. However, it would take more than being a good team to beat the New York Liberty. Miles has to show up, or else it will be yet another wrap-up for the Lynx, who have failed to win the title despite being the best regular-season team in the league for the last three years. 

The Lynx will face New York in Game 2 on Tuesday. In a win-or-go-home game, the Lynx will be under immeasurable pressure, but a win would give them a good chance to win the series at Target Center with home-court advantage in Game 3. If they lose, the Lynx will have a hard time convincing Napheesa Collier to stay, who will be a free agent after this season.