By Jim Souhan
The only shocking aspect of the Lynx getting swept in the first round of the playoffs was that Olivia Miles treated the paint as if it were radioactive.
The losses themselves weren’t shocking. The Liberty might be the best No. 8 seed in sports history. Breanna Stewart dominated at the FIBA World Cup and brought that dominance back to the WNBA, reestablishing herself as the second-best player in the world.
The Lynx had no answer for Jonquel Jones. Sabrina Ionescu was the other member of the Liberty’s Big Three, and she played much better in this series than she did when the Liberty defeated the Lynx in the Finals in 2024.
That Miles was rusty, or tender, after dealing with injuries down the stretch wasn’t surprising, anymore than was Napheesa Collier’s inability to play like a superstar following two ankle surgeries.
These are the postseason verities: Seeding doesn’t matter nearly as much as health and peaking at the right time; and injuries can be more important than any other factor.
What was most shocking about the Game 2 loss on Tuesday in Brooklyn was that Miles didn’t even try to do what she does best. She didn’t try to break down the defense, then create shots either for herself or teammates.
That tells us all we need to know. Whether she was injured, rusty or a combination of both, Miles couldn’t play her game, and her game is what made the Lynx special this season.
In a way, Miles proved just hos valuable she was this season. Without her playing like a superstar, the Lynx looked lost.
The Lynx excelled this season despite having just one reliable post player, and Natasha Howard is much more of a forward than a center. Dorka Juhasz was the Lynx’s one true center, and she failed to develop into a reliable contributor.
Lynx boss Cheryl Reeve vowed to fix what’s wrong with this team, which, to me, means adding quality size.
But that will matter only if the Lynx are able to re-sign Collier, who declined to sign a long-term deal last offseason.
I can’t predict what she’ll do, but this is what I’ve heard, behind the scenes, from hundreds of players, agents and team executives over the years: Once a player sniffs free agency, they’re probably gone.
-The hot listen: Check out Weathering Life with Belinda Jensen and Lee Valsvik. They had former Lynx star, current Lynx assistant coach and Timberwolves analyst Rebekkah Brunson as their guest this week.
-Daily thought: The worst thing I heard this week was that Walker Jenkins has to have surgery to remove bone chips from his elbow. This should have been the winter in which he bulked up and refined his skills.
-Upcoming: I have many thoughts on the Twins, and I’ll share them later this week.
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