Lynx’s Napheesa Collier ankle surgeries means no Unrivaled. What about 2026 WNBA season?

As Unrivaled is set to start soon, the league will not have one of the stars participating. Napheesa Collier is undergoing surgery on both of her ankles, and it will sideline her for the next four to six months, according to ESPN’s Kendra Andrews.

Collier hurt both of her ankles with the Minnesota Lynx this past season. She sprained her right ankle on Aug. 2 and missed three weeks. In September, she tore three ligaments in her left ankle in Game 3 of the WNBA semifinals against the Phoenix Mercury. Before the initial injury, she was the frontrunner for WNBA MVP, but she still finished in second place when the season ended.

Collier originally said she didn’t need surgery on her ankle, and the hope was that rehab would help improve the ailment so she could be ready for Unrivaled. In the end, the medical teams from the Lynx and Unrivaled determined that she needed multiple procedures.

With the surgeries, there’s also a chance that her recovery could go into the WNBA season. The games usually start in May, but with the CBA negotiations still ongoing, the season could either start later in the year or there could be a lockout.

For now, the Lunar Owls will replace Collier with Temi Fagbenle from the Golden State Valkyries. She will join Skylar Diggins, Marina Mabrey, Rebecca Allen, Rachel Banham, and Aaliyah Edwards.

This season of Unrivaled is set to be even bigger than the inaugural year, as they raised capital from a group of investors at a $340 million valuation, and will feature new players.

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