Caitlin Clark's two-week absence from the WNBA is having a wide ripple effect throughout the WNBA, and perhaps no one will feel it more than Napheesa Collier — who will likely step to the forefront of the 2025 MVP conversation with Clark out of the picture.
Collier is already a heavy favorite for the honor and is currently leading the WNBA with 29.5 points per game — and the Lynx are undefeated.
Before her injury, Clark was averaging 19 points, 9.3 assists and 6 rebounds per game this season. Those are definitely MVP numbers, but it's unclear how her injury will impact her odds.
Collier made it clear during the offseason that she is coming for everything this year, including the WNBA championship. The Lynx lost the chip to the Liberty last season, something Collier referred to as an "injustice."
"I’m definitely still not over it," Collier said during a January interview with GQ. 'This specific situation just feels different for me because I feel like it was…I don't know if avoidable is the right word, but we've been complaining about refereeing for the entire year. It just feels so preventable."
"The entire series was horrible. The entire season was horrible," she added.
The season is young, but it will certainly be interesting to see how the MVP race shapes up (with or without Caitlin Clark).