Minnesota Lynx star Napheesa Collier will miss the entirety of the Unrivaled season and potentially the start of the WNBA season after undergoing surgery on both ankles, Unrivaled announced Thursday.<\/p>\n
Collier’s estimated recovery timeline is four to six months, according to the league.<\/p>\n
The Athletic’s Ben Pickman<\/a> reported Thursday that Collier is expected to undergo the surgery next week.<\/p>\n Collier co-founded Unrivaled in 2023 alongside Breanna Stewart. She was expected to play for Lunar Owls BC when the 3v3 season kicks off Jan. 5.<\/p>\n She said in a statement on Instagram<\/a> she is “heartbroken” to miss the 2026 Unrivaled season.<\/p>\n “I have fought hard over the last few months to be back with my Owls and was devastated to be told by my team of doctors that surgery was the best path forward,” Collier wrote.<\/p>\n She added, “I will be back at full strength as soon as possible and ready to continue where I left off.”<\/p>\n Golden State Valkyries center Temi F\u00e1gb\u00e9nl\u00e9 will join the Lunar Owls for the 2026 Unrivaled season in Collier’s place, according to the league.<\/p>\n Collier suffered an ankle injury in Game 3 of the 2025 WNBA semifinals against the Phoenix Mercury that sidelined her for the Lynx’s elimination Game 4.<\/p>\n ESPN’s Ramona Shelburne<\/a> reported at the time that Collier had “suffered a Grade 2 tear of three ligaments in her left ankle and a muscle” during a collision with the Mercury’s Alyssa Thomas.<\/p>\n According to Shelburne, the injury was expected to have “a minimum six-week recovery period.”<\/p>\n Collier told reporters in mid-December that she was still working to get back to full health but that she would not need surgery, per ESPN’s Kendra Andrews<\/a>.<\/p>\n She said at the time she hoped to be 100 percent healthy by January, per Andrews.<\/p>\n According to Unrivaled, the decision to ultimately undergo surgery was made “following additional consultation during the Unrivaled preseason and after exhausting all options to progress rehabilitation of injuries sustained during the WNBA season.”<\/p>\n Collier, who has established herself as one of the most dominant defenders in the WNBA over the last three seasons, won her first Defensive Player of the Year award in 2024.<\/p>\n She finished the 2025 WNBA season having averaged 22.9 points, 7.3 rebounds and 3.2 assists while recording 1.6 steals and 1.5 blocks through 33 games to help the Lynx finish the season on top of the Western Conference.<\/p>\n Collier’s injury absence will be a major loss for the Lunar Owls, whom she led to a league-best 13-1 record in 2025.<\/p>\n It will also call into question whether the WNBA will be starting the 2026 season without one of its top players.<\/p>\n The last WNBA season began in mid-May, although it is unclear when the 2026 campaign will begin as players and league continue negotiating a new collective bargaining agreement.<\/p>\n With just over a week remaining until the Jan. 9 deadline to finalize a new contract, ESPN’s Alexa Philippou<\/a> recently reported “the sides remain far apart on several key issues.”<\/p>\n