Phee’s Back—and She Didn’t Miss a Beat

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What to Know About Women’s Basketball Today

1. Napheesa Collier Returns With a Vengeance 🔥

She’s back. MVP candidate Napheesa Collier returned to the Lynx lineup yesterday, dropping 32 points and 9 rebounds to power Minnesota past the Fever, 97–84. It was her first game back since spraining her ankle on August 2. (WNBA)

🎥 Watch highlights from Phee’s return

WHY IT MATTERS: The Lynx have remained atop the league even without their superstar, winning 5 of 7 games in her absence. But with Phee looking just as dominant as before, Minnesota is once again the clear favorite for the 2025 title. The win was also the Lynx’s 30th of the season, tying their franchise record for most in a single season..

2. Portland Fire Finally Hire Their GM 😅

The Portland Fire expansion franchise has made its key front office hire, naming Vanja Černivec—currently the Valkyries’ VP of Basketball Ops—as the team’s first general manager. (The Rose Garden Report)

WHY IT MATTERS: A GM is the architect of the roster, and Portland couldn’t have picked a more experienced hire. Černivec played a key role in building Golden State’s inaugural squad, which became the most successful expansion team in sports history.

It hasn’t been smooth sailing for the Fire, who took seven months to hire a president, before parting ways less than three months later. Landing Černivec feels like a much-needed course correction and could set the tone for Portland’s debut season.

3. AT & Jessica Shepard Deliver Triple-Double Weekend 🏀

It was a weekend full of triple-doubles:

• Jessica Shepard (Lynx) delivered the fastest triple-double in WNBA history on Friday, hitting the mark in just 22 minutes vs the Fever (22 points, 11 rebounds, 11 assists). (CBS Sports | Watch highlights)

• Alyssa Thomas (Mercury) matched her own single-season record with her 6th triple-double of 2025 (13 points, 16 assists, 12 rebounds vs the Valkyries). That’s 5 in her last 9 games. (AZ Central | Watch highlights)

WHY IT MATTERS: Outside of Alyssa Thomas, triple-doubles are extremely rare in the WNBA. There have been fewer than 60 total in league history. What makes them special is not just the stats, but the versatility and all-around impact they represent. Both Shepard and Thomas showed that by leading their teams to key wins.