A new week means a new Lynx Offseason Update!
As the WNBA and players’ union continues to trade CBA proposals in what will be a big week with the deadline of March 10 set by the WNBA to reach a new deal without impact of a delayed season, the offseason has continued — and already ended for a few — for Minnesota Lynx players worldwide.
This offseason, there are 12 Lynx players playing across the globe, those players being Courtney Williams, Alanna Smith, Natisha Hiedeman, Kayla McBride, Bridget Carlton, Jessica Shepard, Maia Hirsch, Dorka Juhász, Maria Kliundikova, Anastasiia Olairi Kosu, Camryn Taylor and Jaylyn Sherrod. Napheesa Collier, who was supposed to take part in Unrivaled, will miss the season due to having surgery on both ankles and missing a total of 4-6 months in recovery.
Let’s take a look at where those Lynx players are playing, how they’ve done as of late, how they are performing so far this offseason or how they finished their offseason.
Alanna Smith — Mist (Unrivaled)
For the first time as a professional player, Smith spent her offseason playing the United States rather than overseas like she has always done. And she certainly left her mark in her first Unrivaled season.
Last week, Smith and Mist took down Courtney Williams and Breeze in the semifinals of the playoffs, going on to also defeat Phantom in the championship game to claim the Unrivaled title. Smith ended her season contributing nicely with Mist, nearing double digits in scoring and contributing in every aspect of the game.
Unrivaled: 14 games — 9.0 PPG, 5.2 RPG, 0.9 APG, 0.8 BPG, 0.5 SPGMarch 4 vs. Phantom (80-74 win): 11 points (5-7 FG, 1-1 3Pt), six rebounds, two assists, one blocks and one steal in 10.5 minutes
Kayla McBride — Fenerbahçe (Turkey)
McBride is back at her second home in Turkey while returning to play for Turkish powerhouse Fenerbahçe. Though some expected her to return to play in Unrivaled this offseason, McBride chose to start the offseason overseas with a team that is special to her.
McBride began her season overseas strong, providing a two-way showing for the Turkish powerhouse. Over the past week, McBride and Fenerbahçe began Turkey-KBSL postseason action, resulting in McBride not playing as much as she normally does due to two blowout victories.
Turkey-KBSL: 16 games — 13.0 PPG, 4.9 APG, 4.2 RPG, 0.9 SPGEuroLeague: 10 games — 14.1 PPG, 3.4 APG, 3.2 RPG, 1.7 SPGMarch 2 vs. Kayseri (113-42 win): 14 points (5-9 FG, 4-8 3Pt), three assists and two rebounds over 15 minutesMarch 3 vs. Kayseri (95-59 win): seven points (2-6 FG, 1-4 3Pt), three assists and one rebound over 13 minutes
Bridget Carleton — USK Praha (Czech Republic)
Carleton is in a new country this offseason, adding her seventh country she’s played in during her career along with Australia, Spain, Franco, Hungary, Israel and Turkey.
Carleton has done a little bit of everything in Czech Republic-ZBL and EuroLeague action this offseason, leaving her mark on multiple areas of the game like we’ve become used to seeing with the Lynx.
Czech Republic-ZBL: 13 games — 12.0 PPG, 5.3 RPG, 2.1 APG, 1.5 SPG, 0.5 BPGEuroLeague: 11 games — 12.6 PPG, 3.5 RPG, 1.6 APG, 1.4 SPG, 0.3 BPGFeb. 25 vs. Zaragoza (73-66 loss): six points (2-11 FG, 2-7 3Pt), three steals, two rebounds and one assist over 29 minutesFeb. 28 vs. Zabiny Bmo (97-60 win): 10 points (4-8 FG, 2-4 3Pt), three rebounds, one assist, one block and one steal over 20 minutes
Jessica Shepard — Famila Schio (Italy)
Shepard is in a new country this offseason after spending last offseason in Greece, taking the court with Italian power Famila Schio. She has played in Greece, Israel and Italy so far in her career.
Shepard has put up some impressive numbers in Italy this offseason, once again being a double-double machine like we’ve been accustomed to seeing. Over the past week, Shepard had a near double-double in Italy-Serie A1 action and a double-double showing in a postseason loss to Venezia in EuroLeague play.
Italy-Serie A1: 18 games — 17.3 PPG, 9.2 RPG, 2.1 APG, 0.9 SPGEuroLeague: 15 games — 17.0 PPG, 9.5 RPG, 2.5 APG, 1.4 SPGFeb. 28 vs. San Giovanni (79-54 win): nine points (4-8 FG), 15 rebounds and four assists over 29 minutesMarch 3 vs. Venezia (62-51 loss): 16 points (8-13 FG), 13 rebounds, three assists and two steals over 37 minutes
Maria Kliundikova — UMMC Ekateringburg (Russia)
Kliundiokva, who was a midseason arrival for Minnesota and ended up with a nice role off the bench for the Lynx, is back in her home country of Russia this offseason playing for UMMC Ekateringburg alongside soon-to-be second-year Lynx forward Anastasiia Olairi Kosu.
Kliundikova has put together a balanced offseason so far, helping her squad offensively and on the boards while also impacting other areas of the game. Over the past week, Kliundikova had a strong showing with a double-digit scoring total and a big presence on the boards.
Russia-PBL: 21 games — 12.1 PPG, 7.5 RPG, 2.0 APG, 1.1 SPG, 0.8 BPGMarch 4 vs. Dynamo Kursk (66-55 win): 12 points (5-12 FG, 1-3 3Pt), seven rebounds, one assist and one steal over 19 minutes
Dorka Juhász — Galatasaray (Turkey)
Juhász is spending her WNBA offseason in a new country, playing in Turkey this season rather than Italy like we’ve seen in the past. Juhász, who sat out the 2025 WNBA campaign while remaining overseas, is still under contract with Minnesota through 2026.
Juhász has made an impact on both ends of the floor in both Turkey-KBSL and EuroLeague action, putting together balanced a showing in Turkey. Over the past week, Juhász displayed solid two-way play in both Turkey-KBSL action and EuroLeague postseason play.
Turkey-KBSL: 14 games — 11.8 PPG, 5.9 RPG, 1.6 APG, 1.1 SPG, 0.7 BPGEuroLeague: 17 games — 13.4 PPG, 8.1 RPG, 1.3 APG, 1.0 SPG, 0.9 BPGMarch 3 vs. Landes (67-51 win): six points (3-6 FG), nine rebounds, three blocks and one steal over 23 minutesMarch 6 vs. Nesibe (86-61 win): two points (1-4 FG, 0-2 3Pt), six rebounds, two steals and one assist over 19 minutes
Anastasiia Olairi Kosu — UMMC Ekateringburg (Russia)
Kosu is back home in Russia this offseason, playing with fellow Lynx teammate Maria Kliundikova with UMMC Ekateringburg.
Kosu, who Minnesota is hoping continues to develop leading into her second WNBA campaign, has gotten off to a nice start in Russia this offseason. Over the past week, Kosu reached double figures in scoring once again while contributing nice defensively as well.
Russia-PBL: 18 games — 10.3 PPG, 5.5 RPG, 1.5 SPG, 0.8 APG, 0.5 BPGMarch 4 vs. Dynamo Kursk (66-55 win): 10 points (5-8 FG, 0-1 3Pt), four rebounds, three steals, one assist and one block over 23 minutes
Maia Hirsch — Charleville-Mezieres (France)
We have yet to see Hirsch in the WNBA after being drafted by the Lynx in the first round of the 2023 WNBA Draft, but she continues to play in France this offseason as she continues to develop.
After an up-and-down offseason last year, Hirsch is off to a nice start to this offseason with some additional time on the floor as well. Over the past week, Hirsch played in one contest, going scoreless with a pair of assists in limited time.
Franco-BWL: 16 games — 8.0 PPG, 3.0 RPG, 0.7 APG, 0.2 BPG, 0.2 SPGEuroLeague: 10 games — 5.9 PPG, 3.1 RPG, 1.1 APG, 0.5 SPG, 0.4 BPGMarch 7 vs. Basket Landes (68-59 loss): no points (0-1 FG, 0-1 3Pt) and two assists over six minutes
Camryn Taylor — Landerneau (France)
Taylor, who joined the Lynx late in the 2025 WNBA season and was part of the playoff run, has moved from Greece last offseason to France and Landerneau Bretagne Basket this year.
Taylor had a slow start to the offseason schedule, but has picked things up as of late with two straight double-digit outings. Over the past week, Taylor contributed in limited time off the bench in a win.
France-BWL: 8 games — 5.1 PPG, 2.0 RPG, 0.3 SPG, 0.1 APG, 0.1 BPGMarch 7 vs. Monpellier (65-59 win): four points (2-2 FG) and three rebounds over eight minutes
Courtney Williams — Breeze (Unrivaled)
Williams returned to Unrivaled for the second season after being one of the first 32 players to make up the inaugural season a year ago. After spending last season with the Lunar Owls, Williams began the 2026 season with Vinyl before she was traded to Breeze.
This season, Williams did a nice job in distributing and contributing on the boards despite having a bit of an up-and-down start to the year offensively. She took part in 14 games, contributing in numerous areas of the game.
Unrivaled: 14 games — 7.9 PPG, 4.9 RPG, 4.2 APG, 0.6 SPG, 0.1 BPG
Natisha Hiedeman — Hive (Unrivaled)
Hiedeman returned to Unrivaled for the second straight season after bouncing around to three different teams — Phantom, Laces and Rose — during the inaugural season. Hiedeman concluded the year with Rose and helped them to an Unrivaled Championship.
With Hive, one of the two newest teams to Unrivaled in 2026, Hiedeman contributed coming off the bench and took part in 12 games with Hive.
Unrivaled: 12 games — 6.1 PPG, 1.9 RPG, 1.3 APG, 0.3 SPG, 0.1 BPG
Jaylyn Sherrod — Rhythm (Athletes Unlimited)
Sherrod spent her offseason staying in the country this offseason, taking part in Athletes Unlimited’s fifth season, which began earlier this February and concluded after four weeks in Nashville.
Sherrod was one of 40 players participating in the fast-paced, full-court, 5-on-5 league this season, finishing just under double figures in scoring on the season.
Athletes Unlimited: 12 games — 9.2 PPG, 2.8 APG, 2.5 RPG, 1.3 SPG
That will do it for this week. As always, thank you for reading! We will catch up with you next week with another Lynx Offseason Update.