Napheesa Collier and Lynx take WNBA’s best record into Commissioner’s Cup title game against Caitlin Clark and Indiana Fever

Courtney Williams, as usual, cut right to the heart of things.

The Lynx had just improved to 14-2 with a 102-63 victory over Connecticut on Sunday, the third-biggest margin of victory in franchise history. Williams and teammate Napheesa Collier were asked what Tuesday’s Commissioner’s Cup championship game against Caitlin Clark and the Indiana Fever meant.

In a word: Money.

“I don’t really care about the hardware,” Williams said of the trophy that would come if the Lynx repeat as champions of the WNBA’s in-season tournament. “I want that bag, straight up. Let’s call a spade a spade, man. We trying to get that money.”

OK then.

Clark, a second-year All-Star, has been an enormous draw from the moment she entered the league as the top pick in the 2024 draft. The crowd Tuesday night at Target Center will be large. The lower bowl was sold out eight minutes after ticket sales began, and upper deck tickets were going quickly on Monday afternoon.

She has missed games because of injuries, however, and is listed as questionable for Tuesday’s game because of a groin injury.

And about that bag: the winning team will split a pool of $500,000. Players on the losing team get $10,000 each.

But the game will also showcase two teams at different points in their development, led by two players — both named All-Star Game captains — in Clark and Collier, who are probably the two most popular players in the league.

At least according to the voting.

“Hopefully the place is packed,” Collier said. “I’m sure it will be. It should be fun.”

As the All-Star Game voting showed, Clark — who has missed seven games because of injuries, including the past two with a groin injury — is immensely popular. Her move from two NCAA finals appearances with Iowa to the WNBA came with fanfare and brought millions of new eyes to the league. Her impact can be seen in attendance figures, the league’s move to charter travel, increased ratings and likely in the way the new collective bargaining agreement will look.

The voting also showed that Collier, whose game has improved every season since she was the No. 6 pick in the 2019 WNBA draft, is finally reaching that plateau. As she joked before Sunday’s game, Collier went from never having been named a starter to being captain of one of the two teams.

No question this has been building. Collier finished second to A’ja Wilson in MVP voting last season and was named the league’s defensive player of the year. This season, she is leading the league in scoring (24.4). Her scoring, shooting percentage (52.5%), three-point shooting (39.6%) and free-throw shooting (94.3%) are all career highs. In Friday’s overtime victory at Atlanta, she became the first player to wear the Air Jordan 40 shoes in a game.

Manufactured social and national media stories to the contrary, Lynx coach Cheryl Reeve has always been a big Clark fan. Clark’s shooting and passing skills and her ability to push pace have always impressed Reeve.

Clark’s talents and charisma match her popularity.

But Collier’s path here was different.

“Phee didn’t come into the league with much fanfare,” Reeve said. “She wasn’t necessarily viewed as the best player in that class. She grabbed ahold of something and has worked and worked and worked.”

The two teams?

The Lynx, built upon defense, sharing the ball — and Collier — have rebounded from a Game 5 loss to New York in last year’s WNBA finals to start this season with the league’s best record.

“Phee is the MVP,” Reeve said. “If the season ended today, she’s the MVP. It’s not close. Kayla McBride is a top 10 player in wins above replacement. We have some very good players. We’re favored to win a championship. [But] we’re the best team in the league because of Phee.”

The Fever are 8-8 but beat the right teams at the right times to qualify as the Eastern Conference representative in the Commissioner’s Cup. They are 5-4 with Clark in the lineup, 3-4 without her. Her injuries are a big reason why Indiana is still working to find its identity.

Last year, the Lynx liked to talk about how much they loved to operate under the radar of national scrutiny. They can’t do this in 2025. Collier’s star is too bright, and the Lynx’s record too gaudy.

Even so, the spotlight’s glare continues to shine brighter in Indiana, perhaps, than anywhere else in the league.

“There’s definitely a difference in the [national] media coverage for our two teams,” Collier said. “But it’s that way with Indiana and every team, right? But honestly, any way you get more people watching the game, I think, is great.”

That said, it’s time to go for the bag. The money. Oh, and the hardware.

“I’m so excited,” McBride said. “It’s going to be jumping, of course, for so many reasons.”

McBride said last year’s win over the Liberty in New York for the Commissioner’s Cup title was a turning point for the Lynx, where they realized they could be great.

“We’re happy to be here,” McBride said. “And to be at home is even better.”