That girl’s nice.
Olivia Miles pulled the ball back beyond the arc and sized up A’ja Wilson. It didn’t matter that the reigning MVP and defensive player of the year stood between her and the basket. She was going to get this work.
The audacity. The swagger.
Miles froze Wilson with an in-and-out hesitation, exploded past her right hip, and finished with a finger roll before help could arrive. A few possessions later, she put Jewell Loyd on skates with the same hesi before draining a three. Then, she attacked Wilson again, this time on the block, using a crafty underhand finish to score over the league’s most intimidating defender.
Too fast. Too skilled. Too fearless.
The Minnesota Lynx dismantled the defending-champion Las Vegas Aces with a rookie who played as if the moment belonged to her.
That performance wasn’t just a breakout moment. It was another example of why Miles’ arrival has transformed the rhythm of Minnesota’s offense. With Napheesa Collier returning, the Lynx face an enviable challenge: preserving the pace, pressure and playmaking Miles has introduced while reincorporating one of the league’s most dominant forwards.
WNBA! You’re in danger, girl!
Prepped For The Moment
Miles’ acceleration is not an accident. It is by design. At TCU, she ran point in a pro-style offense under Mark Campbell that emphasized pick-and-roll actions, live-dribble creation, and floor spacing straight out of a WNBA playbook.
In Campbell’s offense, the ball lived in Miles’ hands. She made quick decisions, blending elite vision, creativity with the ball, and fearless attacks on bigs, and the Horned Frogs were better for it.
TCU’s offense posted 119.8 points per 100 possessions, eighth in the nation. The same habits that powered that attack- the quick processing, relentless rim pressure, and advanced pick-and-roll reads–have translated seamlessly to Minnesota.
The Impact
At 21-6, the Lynx own the league’s best record, and much of that success begins with an offense that looks noticeably different from a year ago. The most striking change isn’t just how much Minnesota scores. It’s how quickly they get there.
Last season, the Lynx led the WNBA in scoring, averaging 86.1 points per game, and led the league in offensive rating despite playing at one of the slowest paces in the league (ranked 10th)
This season, the Lynx are 2nd in scoring, averaging 91.7 points per game while being first in offensive rating (113.8) and fifth in pace (97.83)–a 3.77 difference, and it’s due to Miles’ and her playstyle. As she pushes the tempo, Minnesota is playing significantly faster while remaining one of the highest scoring teams in the league.
The shift is meaningful. The Lynx haven’t sacrificed efficiency for speed. It has increased the number of possessions while remaining one of the league’s most efficient offenses, a reflection of how Miles pressures defenses before they are organized.
Under Miles, the Lynx have more spacing. They empty the paint and let Miles attack defenses downhill as shooters are spaced around her for occasional drive-and-kick opportunities.
In this five-second clip, no one is in the paint. Miles is as explosive as she is crafty. With her rim pressure, opposing defenses will have to decide whether to contain her or concede open looks from the perimeter.
The added spacing has amplified Kayla McBride’s strengths. Few players relocate better than McBride, and Miles consistently rewards those movements by advancing the ball before defenses can recover.
Miles’ constant pressure in the paint and rim create opportunities for clean looks for a spot-up shooter like McBride. In the second clip, Courtney Williams is left wide open due to the chaos Miles creates.
In the third clip, the Lynx use a high screen-and-roll with Miles and Natasha Howard to exploit a scrambled defense. It’s a simple action, but it illustrates the type of advantage Miles creates before the defense can set. The play ends with Howard finishing, but the real story in the clip is the type of pressure Miles applies before the screen.
That pressure is about to become a valuable weapon for Collier.
The Return
Few players are better equipped to capitalize on those advantages than Collier. One of the league’s most efficient scorers, ‘Phee can punish switches in the post, attack closeouts, finish as a roller or facilitate from the elbows. With Miles collapsing defenses before Collier even touches the ball, the Lynx may be adding their best player to an offense that’s already evolved.
In the opening play of the clip, Collier fires a dime from three to McBride on a backcut with limited spacing. With the additional spacing and cutters such as Howard in lineups, Collier can pick apart defenses when facilitating. With Miles, defenses will have some uncomfortable decisions to make since Miles is a downhill threat who can also create advantages for others with how she surveys the floor.
At the 1:51 mark, Collier seals her defender deep in the post before knocking down the fadeaway. Those post touches become even more dangerous alongside Miles. Defenses will have to choose between sending help to Collier or staying home on a guard capable of getting downhill at any moment. Add elite shooters like McBride and Williams around them, and every defensive rotation comes with a cost.
There isn’t a clear answer to this conundrum. On a switch, Collier can hunt and attack mismatches. Drop, and Miles drives. Send help, and Minnesota’s shooters feast on clean open looks. Sit on the perimeter, and two elite creators attack the single coverage.
This is what makes Collier’s return so intriguing and dangerous. They’re getting ready to add their MVP-caliber forward to an offense that already discovered another way to create advantages.
The perfect fit looks like this: One player creates the advantage. The other makes sure the defense pays for it. The Lynx didn’t just survive until Collier returned. They evolved. Now, the rest of the WNBA has to solve a problem with no easy answer.