The Minnesota Lynx are building back toward full strength, and the timing could not be more threatening for the rest of the WNBA. Leading the league at 15-4, the Lynx announced this week that both Napheesa Collier and Dorka Juhász have been cleared and returned to practice on Wednesday. This is a development that the team has been managing carefully since the start of the season.

Coach Cheryl Reeve addressed the approach directly before the announcement.

“Medical team…we wanted to do the right things for Phee in this case, and then certainly when Dorka’s injury happened we started to manage that…” Reeve said, as per Andrew Dukowitz.

“Phee in particular we were saying, ‘You’re 29 years old, and you’re a franchise player,’ and we wanted to make sure we keep her from herself a little bit. As a player, she probably wanted to play a month ago; we were just really, really committed and want to commend our medical team led by Chuck Barta”

Both players responded to the news with understated relief.

“But it definitely feels better to be on the court,” Collier told the media. “Really cool to see from that side, and now excited to jump into it,” Juhász said.

The caution Reeve described has some honest weight to it. Without Collier, Lynx’s franchise cornerstone, the team posted a 15-4 record. Their defensive rating of 97.4 is the best in the league. Their net rating of 13.8 is the best among all teams. Lynx’s offensive rebounding percentage of 33.7 is second in the league, and their effective FG percentage of 54.3% is third. Against that backdrop, there is no pressing reason to rush either player back ahead of schedule.

What Collier brings when fully healthy is something that makes her return particularly significant. In 2025, she finished second in MVP voting, her second consecutive runner-up finish behind A’ja Wilson. She averaged 22.9 points, 7.3 rebounds, 3.2 assists, 1.6 steals, and 1.5 blocks across 33 appearances. Collier became only the second WNBA player to achieve a 50/40/90 split in a season since Elena Delle Donne in 2019. However, she was the first to do so while averaging over 20 points per game.

Juhász adds front court depth and rim protection alongside her. She is a second interior piece the Lynx have been managing without since the season began.

What has made the Lynx’s position so striking is the player who has kept the floor level in Collier and Juhász’s absence.

The Lynx Are Spoilt For Choices, Thanks To Olivia Miles

Olivia Miles, the No.2 pick in the 2026 draft, has shouldered the playmaking burden left by Collier’s absence with the kind of efficiency usually reserved for players well past their rookie year. She is currently averaging 18.7 points, 5.7 assists, and 4.8 rebounds per game on 51.9% shooting from the field, with a usage rate of 24.9%.

Her presence has allowed Natasha Howard, Kayla McBride, and Courtney Williams to operate within their natural roles rather than being stretched beyond them. All three have posted strong individual numbers this season as a result.

Adding Collier and Juhász back into the mix at this level, as per the Lynx’s own terms and timetable would add the perfect amount of ammunition for Minnesota to unleash it’s firepower. And this will only be an upgrade to a well-oiled machinery that’s already working smoothly.