Reeve wins record fourth WNBA Coach of the Year as Collier named DPOY
Minnesota Lynx coach Cheryl Reeve won a pair of top WNBA awards and forward Napheesa Collier was named Defensive Player of the Year, the league announced Sunday.
Reeve was honored as Coach of the Year and Executive of the Year after leading the Lynx to a franchise-best 30-win regular season and a sweep of the Phoenix Mercury in the first round of the playoffs.
With the honor, Reeve, 58, becomes the first person to win Coach of the Year four times. She previously won the award in 2011, 2016 and 2020. This is the second time she has been named Executive of the Year after winning in 2019, making her only the second person to win the coach and executive honors in the same season wins prizes. Curt Miller is the only other person to win both awards with the Connecticut Sun in 2017
In her 15th season as head coach of the Lynx, Reeve received 62 of 67 votes from a national media panel. Sandy Brondello of the New York Liberty received four votes, and Indiana Fever coach Christie Sides was named on one ballot.
As for Collier, this is her first Defensive Player of the Year award. She received 36 of 67 votes, while A’ja Wilson of the Las Vegas Aces came in second with 26. Collier, 28, is in her sixth WNBA season and has started all 34 games played. She ranked second in the league in steals per game (1.91), third in rebounds (9.7), fourth in defensive rebounds (7.5) and seventh in blocked shots (1.41). Over the course of the regular season, Collier kept his opponents in line 39.6% shooting. She is also just the fifth player in league history to win Defensive Player of the Year while averaging 20 or more points per game on offense.
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The four-time All-Star had 10 defensive rebounds or more in seven games and eight steals in one night against the Los Angeles Sparks on June 14.
The Lynx finished the regular season second in the league with fewest points allowed (75.6).
Minnesota, looking for their fifth title, will play the Connecticut Sun in the semifinals of the WNBA playoffs on Sunday night.