Napheesa Collier went scorched earth during the Minnesota Lynx's exit interviews Tuesday, September 30, and accused WNBA Commissioner of a litany of offenses. Collier claimed Cathy Engelbert told her "only losers" complain about officiating in the WNBA, and even more bizarrely, that Caitlin Clark "should be grateful for the WNBA because the league is responsible for her sponsorship deals," per reporting from ESPN's Myron Medcalf.
Collier, the vice president of the Women's National Basketball Player's Association, delivered a frank and no holds barred speech prepared ahead of time. She made several key points about the leaders of the WNBA and raised allegations against Engelbert specifically that point to a deep division between the league's leadership and the players on the court.
Napheesa Collier said she had a conversation with WNBA president Cathy Engelbert and she asked about young players in the WNBA making lower salaries. She said Cathy told her Caitlin Clark should be grateful for the WNBA because the league is responsible for her sponsorship deals.
— Myron Medcalf (@MedcalfByESPN) September 30, 2025
But her claim about Clark is wildly egregious: thanks to NIL deals she took during her final years at Iowa, the 23-year-old Indiana Fever graduated from college a millionaire. In 2024, ON3 reported those deals added up to a massive $3.1 million, and at the time, Clark ranked fourth among all NIL-eligible athletes and first in women's college basketball.
Sure: some of those deals were likely put into place with the expectation that Clark would be drafted into the WNBA and there was an opportunity on the floor for a long-term relationship between the young hooper and various brands. But to walk planet Earth believing that the WNBA is inherently responsible for the success Clark has built for herself is a misguided and even dangerous position for the Commissioner of the WNBA to hold, and potentially sheds light on the league's leadership's thought process when it comes to negotiating with players for a new CBA.
Cathy Engelbert may not be taking players seriously
Collier also insisted the WNBA has "the worst leadership in the world" and that the league is not valuing the players the way it should. This isn't exactly news — the players, who are all members of the WNBPA, have repeatedly vocalized frustration with league leadership throughout negotiations for a new CBA. (The current agreement between the WNBA and the athletes expires at the end of October.)
Engelbert's alleged comment about Clark paints a picture of a leader who may be taking her product — or, more accurately, the humans who put it all on the court for fans night after night, the athletes who are responsible for building the WNBA — for granted. That's a tricky place to be in as players continue to make it clear they're completely comfortable taking that product away, and it's an attitude that likely will not serve the Commissioner well.