Napheesa Collier reacts to husband Alex Bazzell's shout-out after incredible Game 1 performance against Liberty

Napheesa Collier made perhaps the biggest shot of her WNBA career in Game 1 of the WNBA Finals, hitting a clutch basket for the Minnesota Lynx to seal the opening game of the series against the New York Liberty. Following her heroic performance, she received a big shoutout from her husband, Alex Bazzell, on social media.

Bazzell posted on X (formerly Twitter), referring to her as "HER."

"My wife is HER!!" Bazzell wrote.

The 2024 Defensive Player of the Year was both happy and amused by the shoutout, reacting with a laughing tongue-out emoji.

"😛."

Bazzell and Napheesa Collier have been a constant source of support for each other. Bazzell works as a basketball skills coach, training players from both the WNBA and NBA.

Game 1 between the Lynx and the Liberty went to overtime after being tied at 84 at the end of the regulation. Collier scored 21 points in the game, including four in overtime. She drained the game-winner with a turnaround fadeaway jumper, with just over eight seconds remaining, leading the Lynx to a 95-93 victory.

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Napheesa Collier stepped up for Lynx in Game 1 WNBA Finals

Every year since she was drafted in 2019, Napheesa Collier is getting better. The 20-year-old yet again proved why she deserves a spot among one of the best in the league and the Defensive Player of the Year.

Her stat line in the opening game of the series itself should send a warning to the Liberty side. In 43 minutes, Naphessa Collier had 21 points on 62.5% shooting from the field.

By the end of the third quarter, Collier had just 13 points. She tallied six points in the fourth quarter, helping her team cut the seven-point deficit.

However, it was her defensive number that might have saved the night for the Lynx. She also had 8 rebounds, 2 assists, 3 steals and 6 massive blocks in the game.

Compared to her regular season, Napheesa Collier has been able to elevate substantially in almost every stat category of her game in the 2024 WNBA playoffs. She has been doing better offensively and extensively great on the defensive end.

In the 2024 regular season, she averaged 20.4 ppg, and she is now averaging 26.4 ppg in the playoffs. Moreover, during the regular season, she averaged 9.7 rebounds, 3.4 assists, 1.9 steals and 1.4 blocks per game. In the eight postseason games, she is averaging 9.7 rebounds, 3.6 assists, 1.4 steals and 2.5 blocks per game.