Phee-nomenal defense

Congratulations to the Minnesota Lynx’s Napheesa Collier, the 2024 Kia WNBA Defensive Player of the Year.

The sixth-year forward was at the center of the Lynx’s top-notch defense, which finished second in defensive rating (94.8). With an ability to defend guards on the perimeter, deter bigs in the paint and do a bit of everything in between, she was the versatile key that unlocked Minnesota’s defensive success. She also was defensive playmaker, with 3.3 “stocks” (steals + blocks) per game. Her 1.9 steals per game, a career high, ranked second in the league. That included an eight-steal performance in June, the single-game high for the WNBA in the 2024 season. She tallied career highs in blocks (1.4) and defensive rebounds (7.5) as well.

Collier received 36 of 67 votes from a national media panel, joining Sylvia Fowles as the second Lynx to earn the league’s top defensive honor. She also takes the league’s defensive crown from the Las Vegas Aces’ A’ja Wilson, the back-to-back award winner who finished second with 26 votes. The Seattle Storm’s Ezi Magbegor was third with three votes, while the Connecticut Sun’s DiJonai Carrington and the Lynx’s Courtney Williams each received one vote.

Collier also captains the WNBA’s All-Defensive Team, receiving her first All-Defensive First Team selection and third overall All-Defensive selection. Wilson, Magbegor, Carrington and the New York Liberty’s Breanna Stewart join Collier on the First Team. It’s the sixth All-Defensive honor for Stewart, the fourth for Wilson and the third for Magbegor, while it’s Carrington’s first All-Defensive award.

The Sun’s Alyssa Thomas, Lynx’s Alanna Smith, Storm’s Nneka Ogwumike, Liberty’s Jonquel Jones and Phoenix Mercury’s Natasha Cloud compose the All-Defensive Second Team. This is the seventh All-Defensive selection of Ogwumike’s career, while it’s the sixth for Thomas, fourth for Jones, third for Cloud and first for Smith.