Minnesota Sports Forum

Q-is-here wrote: ↑Thu Oct 01, 2026 10:26 am

Monster wrote: ↑Thu Oct 01, 2026 10:06 am

Q-is-here wrote: ↑Thu Oct 01, 2026 8:53 am Is it possible that Reeve has become to the Lynx what Greg Popovitch became for the Spurs - a franchise fixture whose past success leads to a job-for-life and wider-than-normal berth for a non-owner to be outspoken and exert influence?

I'm not suggesting she hasn't earned it, BUT there is a danger to a franchise (or any organization) when a person becomes singularly intertwined with its identity. Is it at least time for her focus on being POBO exclusively and leave the coaching to someone else? My guess is only she can make that decision because no one else in the organization would dare suggest otherwise.

What are we talking about here? This was a team people thought was gonna be maybe a .500 team and they ended the regular season with the best record in the league and now Reeve is maybe not the right coach because they got swept in the playoffs mostly because their rookie PG played like a backup instead of a top WNBA guard? This team and roster still overachieved on the whole. Again let's see how the playoffs finish out. What if the Liberty win it all will the Lynx getting swept look as bad then?

I'm not referring to just this year. But speaking of this year.....regardless of what the expectations were at the beginning of the season, the reality is their collapse began well before the Liberty series. Does she not bear ANY responsibility for that?

She's been the head coach since 2010. Is there not such a thing as being in the same job for too long? And she's held two jobs (coach and POBO) since 2022. Her spouse is the head of business operations for the Lynx. Feels like they should be called the "Minnesota Reeves" instead of the Lynx!

What is the reasonable alternative? This team continues to be rebuilt over and over with success after success. We aren't talking about a Popovich coached team that lost a bunch of games with Trey Lyles as a starter and went through a pretty meh era. I'm not saying she doesn't deserve sole criticism but the idea she shouldn't be the coach anymore doesn't make much sense to me based on all the things she has done well.

Shit went down the tubes right about the time she wore the t-shirt advocating for trans rights for kids. It's embarrassing. She's lucky to be the POBO, hopefully the new owner gives a fuck.

Monster wrote: ↑Thu Oct 01, 2026 10:54 am

Q-is-here wrote: ↑Thu Oct 01, 2026 10:26 am

Monster wrote: ↑Thu Oct 01, 2026 10:06 am

What are we talking about here? This was a team people thought was gonna be maybe a .500 team and they ended the regular season with the best record in the league and now Reeve is maybe not the right coach because they got swept in the playoffs mostly because their rookie PG played like a backup instead of a top WNBA guard? This team and roster still overachieved on the whole. Again let's see how the playoffs finish out. What if the Liberty win it all will the Lynx getting swept look as bad then?

I'm not referring to just this year. But speaking of this year.....regardless of what the expectations were at the beginning of the season, the reality is their collapse began well before the Liberty series. Does she not bear ANY responsibility for that?

She's been the head coach since 2010. Is there not such a thing as being in the same job for too long? And she's held two jobs (coach and POBO) since 2022. Her spouse is the head of business operations for the Lynx. Feels like they should be called the "Minnesota Reeves" instead of the Lynx!

What is the reasonable alternative? This team continues to be rebuilt over and over with success after success. We aren't talking about a Popovich coached team that lost a bunch of games with Trey Lyles as a starter and went through a pretty meh era. I'm not saying she doesn't deserve sole criticism but the idea she shouldn't be the coach anymore doesn't make much sense to me based on all the things she has done well.

A reasonable alternative would be to dilute her power to a degree by giving up her POBO or Coaching role. I'm looking at this from an organizational governance perspective. It's not healthy to have so much power vested in one individual over the long term. She certainly deserves all the recognition she's received for her past accomplishments and remains a very capable basketball mind.

Coolbreeze44 wrote: ↑Thu Oct 01, 2026 11:18 am Shit went down the tubes right about the time she wore the t-shirt advocating for trans rights for kids. It's embarrassing. She's lucky to be the POBO, hopefully the new owner gives a fuck.

Really? They won that game lost against the Sparks then won 6 in a row.

Monster wrote: ↑Thu Oct 01, 2026 2:32 pm

Coolbreeze44 wrote: ↑Thu Oct 01, 2026 11:18 am Shit went down the tubes right about the time she wore the t-shirt advocating for trans rights for kids. It's embarrassing. She's lucky to be the POBO, hopefully the new owner gives a fuck.

Really? They won that game lost against the Sparks then won 6 in a row.

Okay, after that then

Coolbreeze44 wrote: ↑Thu Oct 01, 2026 3:00 pm

Monster wrote: ↑Thu Oct 01, 2026 2:32 pm

Coolbreeze44 wrote: ↑Thu Oct 01, 2026 11:18 am Shit went down the tubes right about the time she wore the t-shirt advocating for trans rights for kids. It's embarrassing. She's lucky to be the POBO, hopefully the new owner gives a fuck.

Really? They won that game lost against the Sparks then won 6 in a row.

Okay, after that then

Hahaha, I learned long ago that I can't get away with anything here...too many smart guys!

It was a combination of things that led to the biggest Minnesota disappointment since the 1998 Vikings disaster, and as much as I like Cheryl, the coach has to take some of the blame. We can certainly point to the lack of a productive bench, but that was also true when we were dominating the league. Kayla's shooting collapse was a big factor too.

But to me the biggest factor in our disastrous finish was the inability of the team to successfully incorporate Phee back into the team after she returned from injury, and the coach may be somewhat responsible here. We were flying high at 22-6 when our star returned, and most expected the team to be even better with her. But we only went 11-7 the rest of the way...that's right, we had more losses in the 18 games with Phee than the 28 without her. I'm just spitballing here, but I wonder if Cheryl didn't make it clear that this was Phee's team and, while Liv carried us for much of the first 28 games, she needed to be more deferential to the real star of the team. Collier seemed healthy to me, but she clearly wasn't included in the offense as much as we have seen in prior years...16.8 PPG was a full 6 points fewer per game than the previous season. I would have thought she would score even better with an elite passer next to her. And while I always noticed her on the court last season, there were times this season where she was practically invisible.

Many think Phee will be gone next season, and while I don't like losing her, perhaps the Collier/Miles tandem was not going to work.

Hard for me to complain about a coach that

Has made the playoffs in 15/16 seasons
One a playoff series 11/16 seasons
Made the finals 7/16 seasons
Won a title in 4/16 seasons


Cheryl has drafted a WNBA best 6 ROY. Has had huge regular season and postseason success with different eras, players and CBA rules

I would say I’m shocked that CC missed 12 of her last 15 shots in a big game.

I would say I’m shocked that Sophie was a game worst -18.

I would say I’m shocked that Angel is still playing and CC isn’t

But good thing I know ball. And I know winners win on the court and not in the headlines

kekgeek wrote: ↑Thu Oct 01, 2026 11:00 pm Hard for me to complain about a coach that

Has made the playoffs in 15/16 seasons
One alla playoff series 11/16 seasons
Made the finals 7/16 seasons
Won a title in 4/16 seasons


Cheryl has drafted a WNBA best 6 ROY. Has had huge regular season and postseason success with different eras, players and CBA rules

I think you confuse the coach with the GM. She has always maneuvered to acquire elite talent. Anyone could have coached that Maya Moore led team, and it's been a long drought since we won a championship. I should point out that for a majority of her tenure the WNBA only had 12 teams, and 8 of them made the playoffs. Your statistics though true, don't tell the whole story. I will also add that her record in elimination games is 7-11, and that includes the games from that dominant era with Moore.

Coolbreeze44 wrote: ↑Fri Oct 02, 2026 12:17 am

kekgeek wrote: ↑Thu Oct 01, 2026 11:00 pm Hard for me to complain about a coach that

Has made the playoffs in 15/16 seasons
One alla playoff series 11/16 seasons
Made the finals 7/16 seasons
Won a title in 4/16 seasons


Cheryl has drafted a WNBA best 6 ROY. Has had huge regular season and postseason success with different eras, players and CBA rules

I think you confuse the coach with the GM. She has always maneuvered to acquire elite talent. Anyone could have coached that Maya Moore led team, and it's been a long drought since we won a championship. I should point out that for a majority of her tenure the WNBA only had 12 teams, and 8 of them made the playoffs. Your statistics though true, don't tell the whole story. I will also add that her record in elimination games is 7-11, and that includes the games from that dominant era with Moore.

More importantly though... she wore that t-shirt!!!

LOL.



Obviously, something was amiss with the Lynx down the stretch. The team, by every account, wildly overachieved after losing several key players from the previous season, including its best player. It could be the coach/GM that suddenly went from helping the team rebound through that turmoil to being the cause of the falloff at the end of the season. Or, it could be having said best player come back that changed the entire makeup of the team... including the pecking order among players. To add further disruption, that player is largely considered to be leaving the organization after the season.

In addition, the still-sorta-gimmicky league had a three-week break shortly before the playoffs. None of this stuff is normal in anyway. I think it cascaded on the Wolves down the stretch.

Personally, I think have one stable figurehead all this time is what has enabled the Lynx to be in the mix for the past 16 years. Especially in a fledgling, growing, learning-on-the-fly league. Eventually, Reeve's style will reach its expiration point. But I don't think this season, amid all the unique situations over the past couple of months, should be used as THE smoking gun.