Napheesa Collier of the Minnesota Lynx has been named the 2024 KIA WNBA Defensive Player of the Year

NEW YORK, September 29, 2024 – Minnesota Lynx forward Napheesa Collier has been named the 2024 Kia ​​WNBA Defensive Player of the Year, the WNBA announced today. This is the first WNBA Defensive Player of the Year award for Collier, who along with Sylvia Fowles are the two players to win the honor with the Lynx.

Collier received 36 votes from a national jury of 67 sportswriters and broadcasters. Las Vegas Aces center forward A'ja Wilson placed second (26 votes) and Seattle Storm forward Ezi Magbegor placed third (three votes). Connecticut Sun guard DiJonai Carrington and Minnesota guard Courtney Williams each received one vote.

In her sixth WNBA season, Collier started in all 34 games she played in and ranked second in the league in steals per game (1.91, tied for her career best). She also ranked fourth in defensive rebounds per game (7.5) and seventh in blocked shots per game (1.41), finishing with career highs in both categories.

Collier grabbed at least 10 defensive rebounds in a game seven times. She also recorded seven games with at least three steals and 15 games with at least two blocks. Her eight steals against the Los Angeles Sparks on June 14 marked the most in a single game in the WNBA season and, along with her six steals against Seattle on May 17, made Collier the only player to play in at least six games Thefts.

A two-time WNBA All-Defensive Second Team selection, the 6-1 Collier helped Minnesota finish second in the league in both defensive rating (94.8) and fewest points allowed (75. 6).

Behind Collier, Minnesota (30-10) secured second place in the WNBA playoffs presented by Google and has since advanced to the WNBA semifinals. Minnesota will continue its quest for a record fifth WNBA championship when it hosts Connecticut in Game 1 of the WNBA semifinals tonight at 8:30 p.m. ET on ESPN.

Overall, Collier ranked third in the WNBA in rebounding with a career-best 9.7 rebounds per game and fifth in scoring with 20.4 points per game, the second-best mark of her career. The four-time WNBA All-Star also shot at 49.2 percent, the second-best mark of her career, and averaged 3.4 assists per game, the highest mark of her career.

Collier was a member of the United States Basketball Women's National Team that competed in the 2024 AT&T WNBA All-Star Game against Team WNBA before winning her eighth consecutive Olympic gold medal at the 2024 Summer Olympics.

In honor of being named the 2024 Kia ​​WNBA Defensive Player of the Year, Collier will receive $5,150 and a trophy to commemorate the achievement.

Below are the voting results for the 2024 Kia ​​WNBA Defensive Player of the Year award and a list of previous honorees.

VOTING RESULTS FOR 2024 KIA WNBA DEFENSE PLAYER OF THE YEAR

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