MINNEAPOLIS — As the Minnesota Lynx make their final push for the playoffs, the team celebrated the much-welcomed return of one of their star players, Napheesa Collier, who had missed the season up until Sunday night.
Collier made her season debut for Minnesota (13-20) with six points, two rebounds and an assist in the Lynx's 81-71 win over the Atlanta Dream (14-19) at the Target Center Sunday.
The Lynx's 2019 Rookie of the Year missed most of the season after giving birth to her daughter, Mila, in late May. After the game, Collier talked about how Mila has changed her perspective on playing in the WNBA.
"My family is so important to me so she definitely gives me perspective where I'm doing this for her now, I'm not just doing this for me," Collier said, with Mila in her lap. "And I love the idea of her watching me play, she won't remember this but hopefully I'll be playing for a long time to come and we can grow up together around this game that I love and to bring her part of that."
On Sunday, the Lynx also had team photo day prior to the game, which featured plenty of smiles with Collier back with the team.
Collier's return came at the final stretch of the Lynx's regular season. Minnesota's final home game is Friday, Aug. 12 against the Seattle Storm. This will be Minnesota's chance to say goodbye to WNBA and Lynx great Sylvia Fowles, who is retiring at the end of this season. The four-time WNBA champion played 15 seasons in the league and became a Lynx in 2015 after playing seven seasons for the Chicago Sky.
Against the Dream, Fowles moved up to third all-time in the WNBA for career blocks with 718, passing Brittney Griner's 716. The 6'6" center will also finish her career as the leader in all-time WNBA career rebounds with 3,973, more than 300 more than second-place Tina Charles.
For more information about tickets to the Lynx's final home game of the season, click here.
Friday's game will also be one of the final games for the Storm's Sue Bird, who is also retiring at the end of the season after two decades of playing for Seattle.
The Lynx's final regular-season game is on Sunday, Aug. 14 on the road against the Connecticut Sun.
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