2023 Minnesota Lynx season

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2023 Minnesota Lynx season
Head Coach Cheryl Reeve
Arena Target Center
Attendance 7,777 per game
Results
Record 19–21
(.475)
Place 3rd (Western)
Playoff Finish 6th seed; Lost 1st Round 1–2 to Connecticut
Team Leaders
Points Napheesa Collier - 21.5
Rebounds Napheesa Collier - 8.5
Assists Lindsay Allen - 4.5
Media
Television Bally Sports North
ESPN
CBS Sports Network
ION
Amazon Prime Video
Minnesota Lynx seasons
< 2022 2024 >

The 2023 Minnesota Lynx season was the 25th season for the Minnesota Lynx of the Women's National Basketball Association, and the fourteenth season under head coach Cheryl Reeve.

Reeve signed a multi-year contract extension to return as Head Coach in November, while also moving from General Manager to President of Basketball Operations.[1] On December 13, 2022, the Lynx announced Clare Duwelius as the fourth General Manager in franchise history.

The Lynx earned the second overall pick through the 2023 WNBA Draft Lottery. They went into the lottery selection holding the fourth best odds to get the first overall pick, but still moved up two selections.[2]

On November 22, 2022, Natalie Achonwa announced her pregnancy via Instagram.[3]

The WNBA announced that the first WNBA Canada Game would feature the Chicago Sky and the Lynx on Saturday, May 13, 2023, at Scotiabank Arena in Toronto, ON. This would be the first-ever WNBA preseason game in Canada.[4]

On September 4, Napheesa Collier was announced as the first-ever winner of the Sylvia Fowles Altruism Award. The Sylvia Fowles Altruism Award will be an annual award recognizing a Lynx player who best embodies the altruistic traits of kindness, selflessness and overall regard for the well-being of others throughout the community. [5]

The Lynx season started out slowly as they lost five straight games to start the season, ending May 0–5. The losing streak was extended to six as the Lynx lost their first game in June. They won their first game of the season on June 3. They followed up the win with another loss, but then beat Los Angeles back to back. They lost two of their next three games, but won two straight games against Seattle to end June with a 6–4 record. Their two game win streak carried over into July, where the Lynx won their first three games of the month. This five game winning streak was followed by a three game losing streak. The Lynx would win four of their last five games of the month to finish July with a 7–4 record, and make it back to .500 overall. The better fortunes would not stick around to begin August as the Lynx lost three of their first four games. They did win three of their next four before losing the last two games of the month to finish August 4–6. Entering September, the Lynx were solidly in the hunt for a playoff spot. They won their first two games of the month and secured a playoff spot on September 5. They would lose their last two games of the season and finish September 2–2.

The Lynx finished the season 19–21, which saw them finish in a tie for fifth place in the playoff standings. In the tiebreaker with the Atlanta Dream and the Washington Mystics they finished second. The tiebreaker was overall record against the teams and Minnesota was 3–3. As the sixth overall seed in the 2023 WNBA Playoffs the Lynx would face off against the Connecticut Sun, with the first two games of the series being in Connecticut. In the first game of the series, the Sun got off to a hot start and ended up winning game one 90–60. Needing to win to force a third game, the Lynx won a close game in Connecticut 82–75. However, they could not seal the series at home, losing 75–90 to end their season.

Transactions

WNBA draft

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See also: 2023 WNBA draft
Round Pick Player Nationality School/Team/Country
1 2 Diamond Miller  United States Maryland
1 12 Maïa Hirsch  France ESB Villeneuve-d'Ascq
2 16 Dorka Juhász  Hungary UConn
2 24 Brea Beal  United States South Carolina
3 28 Taylor Soule  United States Virginia Tech

Transactions

Date Transaction
November 3, 2022 Signed Head Coach Cheryl Reeve to Multi-Year Contract Extension. Reeve also promoted to President of Basketball Operations[6]
December 13, 2022 Named Clare Duwelius as General Manager[7]
January 13, 2023 Extended Qualifying Offers to Bridget Carleton and Anna Cruz[8]
January 16, 2023 Maya Moore officially announced her retirement from the WNBA[9]
February 3, 2023 Signed Damiris Dantas, Bridget Carleton, Lindsay Allen, Nikolina Milić, and Tiffany Mitchell[10]
February 4, 2023 Signed Kiana Williams, Stephanie Watts, and Maya Dodson to Training Camp Contracts[11]
February 18, 2023 Signed Rachel Banham[12]
March 15, 2023 Hired Kristin Haynie as Assistant Coach[13]
April 14, 2023 Signed Diamond Miller, Dorka Juhász, Brea Beal, and Taylor Soule to Rookie Scale Contracts[14]
Signed Myah Selland and Keishana Washington to Training Camp Contracts[15]
April 20, 2023 Assistant Coach Kristin Haynie announces she will leave to become the Head Coach at Central Michigan[16]
April 26, 2023 Hired Elaine Powell as Assistant Coach[17]
May 3, 2023 Waived Keishana Washington[18]
May 8, 2023 Waived Stephanie Watts and Kiana Williams[19]
May 14, 2023 Waived Maya Dodson and Myah Selland[20]
May 16, 2023 Waived Brea Beal[21]
May 18, 2023 Waived Damiris Dantas and Taylor Soule[22]
Placed Natalie Achonwa on the Inactive List due to Pregnancy/Child-Birth
June 14, 2023 Signed Emily Engstler to a Hardship Contract[23]
June 26, 2023 Signed Kayana Traylor to a Hardship Contract[24]
July 20, 2023 Released Kayana Traylor from the Hardship Contract[25]
July 26, 2023 Released Emily Engstler from the Hardship Contract[26]
July 28, 2023 Signed Emily Engstler to a 7-Day Contract[27]
September 8, 2023 Signed Kayla McBride to a Contract Extension[28]

Roster Changes

Roster

2023 Minnesota Lynx roster
Players Coaches
Pos. # Nat. Name Height Weight DOB From
F 11 Canada Achonwa, Natalie (Maternity Leave) 6' 3" (1.91m) 198 lb (90kg) 1992-11-22 Notre Dame 8
G 2 United States Allen, Lindsay Injured 5' 8" (1.73m) 145 lb (66kg) 03-20-1995 Notre Dame 5
G 15 United States Banham, Rachel 5' 9" (1.75m) 175 lb (79kg) 1993-07-15 Minnesota 7
G/F 6 Canada Carleton, Bridget 6' 1" (1.85m) 190 lb (86kg) 1997-05-22 Iowa State 4
F 24 United States Collier, Napheesa 6' 2" (1.88m) 185 lb (84kg) 1996-09-23 Connecticut 4
G/F 14 Hungary Juhász, Dorka 6' 5" (1.96m) 192 lb (87kg) 1999-12-18 Connecticut R
G 21 United States McBride, Kayla 5' 10" (1.78m) 186 lb (84kg) 1992-06-25 Notre Dame 9
F 31 Serbia Milić, Nikolina 6' 3" (1.91m) 172 lb (78kg) 04-12-1994 Serbia 1
G 1 United States Miller, Diamond 6' 3" (1.91m) 163 lb (74kg) 2001-02-11 Maryland R
G 25 United States Mitchell, Tiffany 5' 9" (1.75m) 152 lb (69kg) 1994-09-23 South Carolina 7
G/F 3 United States Powers, Aerial 5' 9" (1.75m) 166 lb (75kg) 1994-07-17 Michigan State 7
F 10 United States Shepard, Jessica 6' 3" (1.91m) 184 lb (83kg) 1996-09-11 Notre Dame 2
Head coach
United States Cheryl Reeve (La Salle)
Assistant coaches
United States Katie Smith (Ohio State)
United States Rebekkah Brunson (Georgetown)
United States Elaine Powell (LSU)
Athletic trainer
United States Chuck Barta (Wisconsin-La Crosse)
Assistant trainer
United States Brandi BlueArm (Mankato)
Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (FA) Free agent
  • (IN) Inactive
  • (S) Suspended
  • Injured Injured

Depth

Pos. Starter Bench
PG Lindsay AllenCruz Roja.svg Tiffany Mitchell
SG Kayla McBride Rachel Banham
SF Diamond Miller Bridget Carleton
Aerial Powers
PF Napheesa Collier Nikolina Milić
C Jessica Shepard Dorka Juhász
Natalie Achonwa(inactive)

Schedule

Preseason

2023 game log
2023 season schedule

Regular Season

2023 game log
2023 season schedule

Playoffs

2023 playoff game log
First Round vs. Connecticut
Lost Series: 1–2
Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location
Attendance		 Series
1 September 13 @ Connecticut L 60–90 Kayla McBride (16) Collier
Juhász (6)		 Kayla McBride (3) Mohegan Sun Arena
5,056		 0–1
2 September 17 @ Connecticut W 82–75 Kayla McBride (28) Napheesa Collier (13) Dorka Juhász (6) Mohegan Sun Arena
6,673		 1–1
3 September 20 Connecticut L 75–90 Napheesa Collier (31) Kayla McBride (7) Tiffany Mitchell (5) Target Center
8,724		 1–2
2023 playoff schedule

Standings

# Team
[ ]
 W L PCT GB Conf. Home Road Cup
1 x – Las Vegas Aces 34 6 .850 – 18–2 19–1 15–5 9–1
2 x – New York Liberty 32 8 .800 2 16–4 15–5 17–3 7–3
3 x – Connecticut Sun 27 13 .675 7 14–6 13–7 14–6 7–3
4 x – Dallas Wings 22 18 .550 12 11–9 11–9 11–9 6–4
5 x – Atlanta Dream 19 21 .475 15 11–9 11–9 8–12 6–4
6 x – Minnesota Lynx 19 21 .475 15 12–8 9–11 10–10 5–5
7 x – Washington Mystics 19 21 .475 15 9–11 12–8 7–13 5–5
8 x – Chicago Sky 18 22 .450 16 5–15 7–13 11–9 3–7
9 e – Los Angeles Sparks 17 23 .425 17 9–11 10–10 7–13 5–5
10 e – Indiana Fever 13 27 .325 21 5–15 6–14 7–13 2–8
11 e – Seattle Storm 11 29 .275 23 8–12 4–16 7–13 4–6
12 e – Phoenix Mercury 9 31 .225 25 2–18 8–12 1–19 1–9

Playoffs

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See also: 2023 WNBA Playoffs
Round One:
Best-of-3		 Semifinals:
Best-of-5		 Finals:
Best-of-5
                 
1 Las Vegas Aces 2
8 Chicago Sky 0
1 Las Vegas Aces 3
4 Dallas Wings 0
4 Dallas Wings 2
5 Atlanta Dream 0
1 Las Vegas Aces 3
2 New York Liberty 1
2 New York Liberty 2
7 Washington Mystics 0
2 New York Liberty 3
3 Connecticut Sun 1
3 Connecticut Sun 2
6 Minnesota Lynx 1

Bold Series winner

Statistics

Legend
  GP Games played   GS  Games started  MPG  Minutes per game  RPG  Rebounds per game
 APG  Assists per game  SPG  Steals per game  BPG  Blocks per game  PPG  Points per game
 FG%  Field-goal percentage  3P%  3-point field-goal percentage  FT%  Free-throw percentage  TO  Turnovers per game
 PF  Fouls per game Team leader League leader

Regular Season

Player GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
Napheesa Collier 37 37 33.5 .485 .298 .840 8.5 2.5 1.6 1.2 21.5
Kayla McBride 38 38 31.8 .424 .342 .867 3.2 2.2 1.2 0.2 14.3
Diamond Miller 32 32 26.1 .403 .307 .800 3.5 2.5 0.9 0.3 12.1
Jessica Shepard 21 17 26.9 .516 .000 .774 7.0 3.1 0.6 0.1 8.1
Tiffany Mitchell 33 21 23.1 .404 .289 .833 2.3 2.3 0.5 0.1 7.3
Lindsay Allen 29 20 24.1 .399 .206 .792 2.4 4.5 0.6 0.1 6.2
Dorka Juhász 38 27 24.2 .472 .271 .540 6.5 2.6 0.9 0.6 6.0
Nikolina Milić 39 3 12.7 .464 .364 .804 2.4 0.8 0.1 0.1 5.9
Rachel Banham 32 1 13.6 .370 .402 .786 1.0 1.7 0.3 0.1 5.5
Aerial Powers 20 0 9.8 .345 .337 .733 1.8 0.9 0.3 0.1 3.2
Bridget Carleton 38 4 15.1 .345 .337 .733 2.3 0.9 0.3 0.1 3.2
Emily Engstler‡ 12 0 7.8 .381 .286 .375 2.4 0.6 0.4 0.1 1.8
Kayana Traylor‡ 8 0 4.4 .300 .000 1.000 0.1 0.4 0.3 0.0 1.0


‡Waived/Released during the season
†Traded during the season
≠Acquired during the season

Playoffs

Player GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
Napheesa Collier 3 3 36.0 .509 .333 .867 8.0 1.7 0.7 1.3 23.7
Kayla McBride 3 3 39.3 .432 .370 1.000 6.0 2.7 1.0 0.0 18.0
Bridget Carleton 3 0 24.0 .600 .444 .750 3.7 0.7 1.0 0.0 8.3
Diamond Miller 3 3 23.0 .261 .222 .667 1.3 2.0 1.0 0.0 5.3
Dorka Juhász 3 3 24.0 .500 .000 .455 5.0 2.7 0.7 0.0 5.0
Rachel Banham 3 0 19.7 .316 .231 .000 1.7 3.0 1.0 0.7 5.0
Aerial Powers 1 0 14.0 .000 .000 1.000 3.0 0.0 1.0 0.0 4.0
Tiffany Mitchell 3 3 21.7 .417 .500 .000 3.3 3.7 0.3 0.0 3.7
Nikolina Milić 3 0 7.3 .400 .000 1.000 1.3 0.7 0.0 0.0 2.0

Awards and honors

Recipient Award/Milestone Date Awarded Reference
Napheesa Collier WNBA All-Star July 1 [30]
Western Conference Player of the Week July 5 [31]
September 4 [32]
Sylvia Fowles Altruism Award September 4 [5]
All-Defensive Second Team September 22 [33]
All-WNBA First Team October 15 [34]
Diamond Miller Rookie of the Month - July August 2 [35]
WNBA All-Rookie Team October 2 [36]
Dorka Juhász WNBA All-Rookie Team October 2 [36]

References

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  36. ↑ 36.0 36.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.

External links

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