Minnesota Lynx forward Napheesa Collier became only the second player in the history of the WNBA to accomplish a 50-40-90 season, joining former Washington Mystics star Elena Delle Donne, who recorded the feat in 2019 when she averaged 19.5 points and 8.3 rebounds per game for the Washington Mystics and won MVP honors.
Since Dell Donne was awarded the MVP during the first 50-40-90 season in WNBA history, Lynx head coach Cheryl Reeve said that Collier, having only the second 50-40-90 season and doing so while scoring over 20 points per game, should merit her the same MVP trophy.
"It had only been done once before and that player was the MVP of the league and Phee deserves that same recognition. And the numbers don't lie. I think that's something that voters should look at. It's from start to finish. A 50-40-90 is historic. I don't know how long it will be before it happens again. And so Napheesa Collier has been the best player in the WNBA this season and deserves MVP," said Reeve.
According to Reeve, she and Collier met before the start of the 2025 season and she set the 50-40-90 season as a goal for Phee after she finished second behind A'ja Wilson in the 2024 WNBA MVP balloting. Collier took the goal to heart, and she arguably had her best year in the "W" this season, averaging a career-high 22.9 points, 7.3 rebounds, 3.2 assists, 1.6 steals, and 1.5 blocks per game while shooting 53.1 percent from the field, 40.3 percent from 3-point distance and 90.6 percent from the free throw line.
A 50-40-90 season means a player shot at least 50 percent from the floor, 40 percent from 3-point range and 90 percent from the foul line during an entire campaign. The feat is so rare that it has been accomplished by only nine players in the NBA and one player in the G-League. As mentioned earlier, it has been done once in the WNBA before this season.
"It's a goal that Cheryl gave me at the beginning of the year. It's just like a sense of accomplishment. I'm a very goal-oriented person, so when I accomplish those, it just feels good… It's just like a sense of accomplishment," said Collier.
Last week, former WNBA star Sue Bird talked about how the 2025 WNBA MVP contest could go down to the final game of the season . Bird acknowledged Collier's brilliance from start to finish but also mentioned that A'ja Wilson's late surge could win her a fourth MVP award.
According to Bird, she is worried that Collier is missing 10 games due to injury and the Lynx resting her in their last game might hurt her MVP case.
"The way that A'ja Wilson has been playing, the numbers and the win streak and where she has her team right now, it's hard to deny that. And then the same for Phee. And of course, with Phee, there's the whole injury, miss 10 games. I think voters have to figure out how they're going to weigh," said Bird. "If Phee rests because Minnesota's so far ahead, does that change the MVP conversations if Vegas is still playing and A'ja puts up? I mean, it's really interesting."
Well, Reeve didn't sit out Collier. Phee scored 18 points on 8-10 shooting, including 3-4 from 3-point distance, during the Lynx's 72-53 win over the Golden State Valkyrie in their season finale. However, Wilson overtook Collier as the MVP betting favorite last week. And she was named AP Player of the Year for the second straight season, which solidifies her MVP case.
Hopefully, the voters value how rare a 50-40-90 season is and how more difficult it is to do that on the best team in the league.
This story was originally reported by Basketball Network on Sep 13, 2025, where it first appeared in the Latest News section. Add Basketball Network as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
