Maggie Vanoni | Journal Inquirer, Manchester, Conn.

The doctors were listening but not hearing Napheesa Collier.

Her daughter Mila was continually getting sick and doctors were failing to give Collier a diagnosis at each visit. Collier’s fear grew, and so did her frustrations. She wanted answers, help, anything to know her child would be OK.

Collier looked across the exam room at her mom, Sarah Bierbaum, for guidance, to say something that would force the doctors to do something.

But instead of getting involved, Bierbaum reminded her daughter that it was her voice the doctors needed to hear.

“She’s looking at me. I’m not saying anything. I’m gonna let her figure it out,” said Bierbaum. “I would have because that’s, you know, my grandbaby, but I just saw her just continue to say, ‘No, I need you to understand and hear what I’m saying to you. This is what I’m concerned about.’ And finally, the doctor listened, and it was like, ‘OK, yes, honey, that’s what you need to do.’ “

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Motherhood has uprooted Collier’s entire life with new routines and responsibilities, but it has also made her more confident, more focused, and a stronger leader. Just as she now must advocate for her child, the former Incarnate Word basketball star has learned to stand up strong for others and demand change at the highest level by creating opportunity for all.

On the court, her basketball has benefited. She’s finished top four in WNBA MVP voting in each of the last three seasons, including finishing in second place in 2024. This summer, Collier became the second player in WNBA history to finish the regular season averaging 50-40-90 on field goal, 3-point and free throw percentages. She was named among the five finalists for the MVP award on Friday.

Now in the playoffs, she’s the best player on the league’s best team as it chases a record fifth title and her first.

“Being a mother now, she has to speak up,” Bierbaum said. “We talk about that a lot. You know, early on, when she first had Mila, I said, ‘You’re a mom, it’s your job to be the advocate for her.’ And I feel like she’s kind of taken on that role for her teammates … She wants to be an advocate for her teammates, for the entire league, for women’s sports, and I’m just really proud of her.”

Family influence

Bierbaum and Collier’s dad, Gamal Collier, taught Napheesa early to never give up.

When the local AAU teams in the family’s hometown of Jefferson City, Mo., declined to allow Collier to try out and join the program, the Collier family started their own AAU team. They poured resources, support and time into building an inclusive, yet still competitive, team.

Gamal, from Sierra Leone, comes from a family of political leaders, including his father, Gershon Collier, who was an ambassador to the United Nations. As a political science major himself, Gamal preached to kids the value of living in a free country and being able to create opportunity and express opinion.

“I think our general family philosophy was you do what you must. And if you have a certain ability or talent, then you also have an ability, a responsibility, to share that talent or fortune,” Gamal says. “… If you’re civic-minded, then you’re just that type of person where you pay attention to the issues around you. You don’t have to be verbose about them, but you should be aware of them and have some sort of thought process and understand people’s different thought processes also.”

Both her parents describe Collier as a fun, easy-going yet sometimes reserved kid. She’d laugh and goof around with her family, but took time to get comfortable with strangers. She was never outspoken, but friendly to all.

She was always curious about life and wanted to know more.

“We got to the point where on each subject, you could only ask three (questions). So, make them good ones,” Gamal said, laughing. “We just kind of owned our minds that way, because she would ask all kinds of questions, and the questions weren’t bad, but she’d go rapid fire.”

It wasn’t until middle school that her parents noticed Collier begin to creep out of her shell and use her voice. Her parents had always told her never to argue with officials and referees and to always remain humble on the basketball court, no matter the opponent. Collier never trash-talked nor drew much attention to herself when it came to scuffles on the hardwood. She focused her demeanor on people-pleasing and staying even-keeled.

“Why would you compete against somebody and let them know they get under your skin?” Gamal said. “So that was the thing from day one. You know, you go, you compete, you stay stoic, and it’s even more unnerving, I think. But you handle your business. That’s why you’re there.”

Yet, after turning her cheek so many times, she finally stood up for herself.

“We’re at a tournament, and they were playing against girls that were going to be freshmen the next year, and it was a super competitive, aggressive game, and Napheesa and this girl were fighting over a loose ball,” Bierbaum said. “And the girl, like, grabbed her feet, did something, and she said something to Napheesa, like, ‘Get off me’ or ‘Get off the ball.’ And the girl was on the ground, and Napheesa got up, she turned back to her with her hand on her hip, and said, ‘Make me.’ She was so proud of herself for that.”

During her four years at UConn, Collier helped the team win the 2016 NCAA championship. She had all the right basketball pieces to be a talented player, yet struggled to stand tall in her voice and leadership. Bierbaum said Geno Auriemma and Chris Dailey challenged Collier to speak up often, even if just in huddles, so the other players could hear her.

The demands of growing out of her comfort zone were challenging, yet fruitful. Collier left college as a two-time All-American and a two-time AAC Player of the Year. She was the No. 6 overall pick in the 2019 WNBA Draft.

“It was very hard because her freshman year was a struggle, she’ll tell you, like mentally, physically, too,” Bierbaum said. “But mentally it was really the toughest for her, and part of that was because she’d never had to be that kind of a leader before or at the pace that they were moving and the things that they were doing, and what they expected, of course, was just a different level. And she hadn’t experienced that yet. And I think as hard as it was, she wouldn’t change it for anything.”

Motherhood

Gamal no longer keeps track of the number of times he’s heard the Lion King soundtrack. It’s one of the only things Mila wants to listen to in the car, and every time Gamal tries to change it, he’s met with his granddaughter’s strong and vocal opposition.

“A grown man should not be singing The Circle of Life,” Gamal jokes.

It’s Mila’s strong will that reminds him most of his daughter. While Collier herself is polite and firm in standing her ground, Mila demands the world.

“Mila’s her own force, you know,” says Gamal. “But, I mean, it’s Mila’s world, and we’re all part of it … If Mila wants to be in her room and play cooking. When that moment comes, that’s what they do, 100%, you know, we sit around and we eat fake food for 30 minutes.

“… Once (Napheesa) says no, it’s no. She’s not rude about it, but once she takes a stand, it’s over. Mila is just more upfront about it because she’s a 3-year-old kid. She thinks the wall should move when she’s coming.”

Since giving birth to Mila in 2022, Collier’s everyday schedule has revolved around her daughter. From dropping her off at preschool to meal prepping and organizing carpool and babysitters, Mila has created a focused routine in Collier’s life.

Basketball pulls her in many different directions, yet Mila is always priority No. 1. When Collier was injured this season with an ankle injury, she kept up Mila’s schedule — even though she was limited to just one leg.

“You get this grandbaby, and she’s just perfect, you know. But one of the things that took me by surprise was how great a mom she is, not in a negative way, but it’s just great seeing her living for Mila. I mean, Mila’s everything,” Gamal said.

In return, Mila has given Collier the gift of confidence.

Bierbaum says Collier always wanted to be a young mom. She loved babysitting and wanted her child to experience watching her play professionally in the WNBA. Yet when Mila was first born, Collier reached out to Bierbaum for help constantly. She was nervous and didn’t want to do the wrong thing. Balancing motherhood while being a professional athlete was hard.

Every time Collier called Bierbaum, her mother would remind her that she already knew everything she needed to do. Her instincts were correct, and she had to find peace in knowing she was Mila’s mom and knew her daughter best.

“She’s so good, she’s such a good mom,” Bierbaum said. “I’m so proud of that.”

Championship leader

Gabby Williams was stunned after the WNBA’s first in-person negotiation meeting with the Women’s National Basketball Players Association (WNBPA) during the All-Star break in Indianapolis. Not because of the league’s proposal for a new collective bargaining agreement, but because of how vocal her former UConn teammate was in the discussions.

Not only was Collier voluntarily speaking out and voicing her concerns, but she did so confidently.

“I was talking to her, and I was just like, ‘I can’t believe how much you’ve grown and just like your public speaking and just everything,'” Williams said the day after the meeting. “And I just like, feel so proud of her, just watching the way that she’s grown as a woman, just so intelligent and so brave. I’m really, really proud of her.”

Williams, who was teammates with Collier for three years in Storrs, admits she never could have imagined Collier would become this comfortable using her voice in such an important setting.

“(In college), things didn’t really sway her one way or the other,” Williams said. “… She just was kind of always go with the flow, stayed quieter and hated public speaking.”

Since having Mila, Collier is more vocal than ever before. While she may not have the loudest voice in the room, she realizes that her voice has power and impact.

“I think she’s getting to the point where she’s going to speak up because it’s the right thing, not because it’s what someone wants to hear,” Bierbaum said.

As a vice president with the WNBPA, Collier is front and center of the current CBA negotiations with the league. She’s standing up for not just herself, but for all WNBA players — current and future.

“Players have more power than ever in the history of women’s sports right now, and I think we know that,” Collier said during the All-Star break. “… The players (are) what is building this brand and this league; there is no league without the players. And you know, past, present, the ones coming out, they’re the ones that have put in the blood, sweat and tears for the new money that’s coming in, and so we feel like we are owed a piece of that pie that we helped to create.”

Collier’s fight for bettering women’s basketball goes beyond just the WNBA. She teamed up with fellow UConn great Breanna Stewart to help create and launch Unrivaled, a new 3-x-3 league held during the offseason of the WNBA. The league provides a stateside option for players and pays the highest average salary in professional women’s team sports. Collier’s husband, Alex Bazzell, helped found Unrivaled and is the league’s current president.

“It has been almost surreal. I’m so proud of them both,” Bierbaum said. “My heart almost wants to explode. Just so proud of them for seeing where the gaps are. Like, this is your work. This is your job. You see gaps, and then you go create a solution for that. Like, who does that? They did that.”

Collier leads with purpose. She sets the tone by bringing her best self every day and being a good teammate by creating inclusive environments everywhere she goes.

“I think being a mom really helped her to kind of figure out who she is and just be kind of solidified in who she is as a person,” said Kayla McBride, Collier’s Lynx teammate since 2021. “… You never know how superstars are gonna be. And I think she just carries it with such grace. We allow her to be herself, and she allows us to be ourselves.

“And that’s been really, really important for my journey, I think Courtney’s (Williams), like, we can all speak to that, even Cheryl (Reeve). When you have the best, one of the best players in the world, coming in humble and just willing to work, willing to hold herself accountable first, it makes everything else easier. So, I’m always in awe of her.”

Last year, Collier was named the WNBA’s Defensive Player of the Year. This year, she finished the regular season averaging a career-high 22.9 points per game.

“She’s always had the skill,” Bierbaum said. “… I think she’s finally started to see that that confidence is genuine. You know that saying, ‘Fake it till you make it.’ She doesn’t have to fake it anymore. I feel like she really, truly is confident in the person and player that she is, and so it’s just completely transformed how she’s playing.”

The Lynx are the top-overall seed in the playoffs and were the only team to sweep its first-round opponent, beating Golden State 101-72 in Game 1 and 75-74 in Game 2.

Minnesota begins the semifinals Sunday against either New York or Phoenix. After losing to the Liberty in Game 5 of last year’s Finals, the Lynx are hungrier than ever. If they succeed in winning the 2025 title, the franchise will set the record for most WNBA championships at five, while Collier will earn her first.

Gamal and Bierbaum are proud of their daughter. They see her growth and maturity and her devotion to Mila. Most importantly, they’re inspired by how Collier has made it her mission to create a better world for not only her daughter, but for all of women’s basketball.

“This is what we do as parents: you want your kids to be better than you in every way. And she’s done that. She’s doing that,” Bierbaum said. “And I’m just so happy for her and proud of what she’s been able to do. I love seeing a confident woman.

“She’s always been easy going, and whatever, but she can be stubborn now, which I love, because, yes, sometimes you have to stand your ground, and it comes off as being stubborn. But she’s holding her ground, and I love to see that.”

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