Napheesa Collier wins $200K by taking Unrivaled…
MEDLEY, Fla. — Napheesa Collier of the WNBA’s Minnesota Lynx took home $200,000 on Friday after she beat Washington Mystics ahead Aaliyah Edwards within the closing of Unrivaled’s 1-on-1 match.
The winner’s verify was the biggest one-day prize in girls’s basketball historical past, Unrivaled commissioner Micky Lawler mentioned, a huge payday that was among the many objectives of Collier and fellow WNBA star Breanna Stewart once they based the 3-on-3 league.
Unrivaled provides WNBA gamers alternatives to compete within the United States and earn good salaries — an particularly enticing option for gamers who for years suited up abroad within the offseason to complement their income.
Napheesa Collier shoots a layup previous Aaliyah Edwards during her win within the finals of the Unrivaled 1-on-1 basketball closing on Feb. 14, 2025. AP
Players earn an average wage of more than $220,000 during the eight-week season, which is close to the utmost base wage within the WNBA.
“My entire WNBA salary is what I just got in 30 minutes of playing 1-on-1,” Collier mentioned. “Which is insane to even say. And same for (playing) overseas. A lot of people, this is their full contract, so you’re playing seven months for this kind of money.”
Collier, a No. 1 seed within the 30-player match, received the best-of-three sequence 2-1 over the eighth-seeded Edwards to develop into Unrivaled’s first 1-on-1 champion.
Each sport between the previous UConn standouts was performed to a successful rating of 8, with Edwards coming from behind to take the opener and Collier successful the ultimate two.
Collier’s 5 Unrivaled teammates every acquired $10,000 from the match’s $350,000 prize pool. Edwards acquired $50,000 for reaching the ultimate.
Collier hopes girls’s basketball can embrace the 1-on-1 format.
“You see guys or boys playing in the parks — like pickup or one-on-ones, and you don’t see that on the women’s side as much,” she mentioned. “So that’s something we’re trying to change, just that atmosphere where everything’s not as organized basketball, but just playing in your backyard or at the park.”
Napheesa Collier shoots over Aaliyah Edwards during the Unrivaled 1-on-1 basketball closing. AP
The win capped a dominant match run for Collier, who performs for Unrivaled’s Lunar Owls and leads Unrivaled in scoring at 29.3 factors per sport.
Earlier Friday, Collier overwhelmed former UConn teammate and No. 6 seed Azura Stevens of their semifinal matchup.
Collier scored the primary eight factors of the sport and the reigning WNBA Defensive Player of the Year relied on stifling protection to win 11-2.
Collier breezed previous Katie Lou Samuelson within the first spherical earlier than successful a bodily second-round battle towards Rickea Jackson.
Aaliyah Edwards drives on Napheesa Collier during her loss within the finals of the Unrivaled 1-on-1 match. AP
She then beat her Lynx and Lunar Owls teammate Courtney Williams to achieve the semifinals.
She shot her well beyond Edwards within the decisive Game 3, making 4 of 6 pictures and holding Edwards scoreless.
Edwards, who performs for Mist in Unrivaled, beat two top-seeded opponents on her option to the ultimate, cruising previous No. 1 seed Arike Ogunbowale 11-2 within the first semifinal matchup earlier Friday.
Before that, she shut down No. 1 seed Stewart 12-0 within the opening spherical. After incomes a second-round bye, Edwards topped third-seeded Allisha Gray 12-6.
Napheesa Collier drives on Aaliyah Edwards during her victory within the closing of the Unrivaled 1-on-1 match. AP
Ogunbowale and Stevens received $25,000 every for reaching the semifinals. Rounds up to the finals had been single-elimination and performed to a successful rating of 11. All video games had conventional scoring, with every basket price both two or three factors.
The 22-year-old Edwards is getting ready for her second season with the Mystics and hopes her efficiency Friday reveals how laborious she’s been working to improve.
“I’m proud of myself. No one could take that away from me,” Edwards mentioned. “All the work I put in. I was able to just showcase that and kind of let everyone know that, you know, I’m not one to play with.”
Collier famous that the physicality of some matchups left a lot of gamers gassed during the match, which is one thing she mentioned may very well be addressed subsequent season.
She’d like to see a comparable occasion for NBA gamers.
“It’s up to the players if they want to do it,” Collier mentioned. “You’re putting your name on the line. You’re putting your reputation on the line. It’s a vulnerable situation. So again, I really commend everyone who competed in this because … anyone can win.”
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