Rivals Week Derailed by Injuries to WNBA Stars

Rivals Week Derailed by Injuries to WNBA Stars

NEW YORK — The WNBA’s inaugural Rivals Week, intended to generate buzz and ignite playoff pushes, is facing a major setback as injuries have sidelined several of the league's biggest stars. Key players like Napheesa Collier, Breanna Stewart, Caitlin Clark, and Angel Reese will all be out of commission for their highly anticipated matchups.

The week was set to tip off with a primetime showdown between Clark’s Fever and Reese’s Sky, a matchup that has become one of the league's most talked-about rivalries. However, Clark is recovering from a groin strain, and Reese has missed four of the last five games with a back injury.

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Collier's Minnesota Lynx and Stewart's New York Liberty

Similarly, a WNBA Finals rematch between Collier's Minnesota Lynx and Stewart's New York Liberty on Sunday has lost some of its luster, as Collier is out with a sprained ankle and Stewart is dealing with a bone bruise in her knee.

Despite the injuries, the league remains in a tight playoff race, with only four games separating second-place New York from eighth-place Golden State with a month left in the season. WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert had previously highlighted the timing of Rivals Week as "critical" for driving the playoff push.

In other news, the Minnesota Lynx remain the top team in the AP poll, with Napheesa Collier being named AP Player of the Week after averaging 24 points and six rebounds. The league is also seeing a ratings boom, with Las Vegas's game against Minnesota drawing an average of 1.6 million viewers, a sign of the league’s growing popularity.