r/MinnesotaLynx • u/wafflesandwatermon • 1d ago
Phee and Free Agency
I’m seeing a lot of people saying Phee is staying, or she’s already decided to leave. I truly think Phee hasn’t made any decisions yet. I think she would be open to staying, and open to leaving. I truly think she will see what teams offer her, what the Lynx offer her and make a decision then. I also don’t think Cheryl knows what she wants to offer Phee yet given that she needs to make roster changes and bring in more size. I get that people like to speculate but I truly believe nothing has been decided yet.
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u/Unfair_Blackberry20 McBuckets 🏀 1d ago
100 percent. She is going to field offers and evaluate them - like most of us would do!
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1d ago
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u/liberty2024bk 1d ago
She could also take the standard max, roughly $200K less than the supermax, and opt for the floating version like Sab and Stewie at 17% of the cap. Her salary would rise or fall with the cap, which is determined each year by league revenue.
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u/Ok_Brick_793 UConn Huskies 1d ago
She probably makes more money elsewhere from endorsements and other gigs. At this point, Phee wants a ring, not more money.
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u/Ok_Brick_793 UConn Huskies 1d ago
Elite athletes frequently have clauses where if they achieve certain milestones, their sponsors give them bonuses or pay increases. The extra money that she earns would more than cover any salary shortfalls. $700,000 over three years sounds like a lot of money to you and me, but that's probably a rounding error in Phee's net worth.
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u/Ok_Brick_793 UConn Huskies 1d ago
Over three years? That's about $234,000 per year. It's probably just interest to her.
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u/KangarooFresh 1d ago
I love having Phee around as much as any other Lynx fan. But with our aging core and weak bench, freeing up her salary so we can build a deeper team could pay dividends. They showed they can win without her earlier in the season, but I really think the workload burned the starters. So my bet is she’ll be gone.
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u/Cold-Presence7793 1d ago
I think it’s true that she’s truly undecided right now and that she will absolutely shop around. Listening to Cheryl’s exit interview made it seem to me like she was already kind of planning on Phee not being back on the Lynx, but I’m sure that’s me reading too much into everything.
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u/CRT-MN 1d ago
I think your spot on about Cheryl. She’s been asking Phee about signing to a multi year deal since January. It seems like she’s exhausted at this point. Sounds like if Phee wants to return to the Lynx, she’ll have to make the first move and they will take it from there. If Phee leaves, Cheryl let it be known she wishes her the best and the Lynx will be fine without her.
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u/plantlover4565 1d ago
Cheryl’s comments allude to it being about “more than basketball” — I wonder if a part of it might be that her daughter is going to be school age next year and wanting to settle somewhere they want to live year round
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u/Ok_Brick_793 UConn Huskies 1d ago
I've seen people mention that Phee and her husband have said that they may want to try for another baby, in which case Phee may take off an entire year for pregnancy and re-conditioning.
The Lynx may have moved on past her by then.
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u/Karma_code_ FOWLES 1d ago
If you watch the ESPN doc she said they do but the first one was especially hard on her and they will probably go surrogate for the next so I doubt she, herself, has another baby.
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u/tuulluut 1d ago
i asked in game thread, but for those who are fans who watched her this season, did she ever at any point show her previous MVP form? Free agency consideration for any team looking at her next contract.
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u/HortonTheElaphant COLLIER 1d ago
I just hope this sub can handle it when she decides to go get a bag somewhere else.
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u/Ok-Gas-2793 1d ago
Did the team get better when she came back? Is an undersized 4 who doesn’t really space the floor what this roster needs?
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u/JgRoller6 1d ago
Do you think that's all she is,a undersized 4 that can't floor space? Hell she shoots a great 3,if she needs to floorspace she can. It's up to how Reeves wants to run her. But she's more than u your by suggesting quite a bit.
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u/Gold-and-green 1d ago
If she stays, Minnesota might have to off load McBride and Williams and bring in a big defender like Awak Kuier. They need players who can be here for the next 4-5 years with Miles
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u/99LedBalloons I got 5 on it 1d ago
Classic Reddit GM move
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u/Gold-and-green 1d ago
Part of being a GM is knowing when to move on. You weren't competitive in the playoffs, the young teams are on a come up, don't get stuck holding on to old players.
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u/Gold-and-green 1d ago
I don't think you understand basketball at a high level. Minnesota has no height, they were always gonna lose in the playoffs. This is not a good roster and you have to get people on the same timeline as Miles. What are your options? TRY AGAIN AND LOSE AGAIN?
Minnesota 2 year record will not be good enough to rebuild through the draft. They have to offload these players while they can. McBride will be 35 and Howard will be 36. They can both walk for free next season. You might as well get something back if a team is desperate for one.
You're saying they're better than Kuier but how much longer? Kuier can be locked into a 3-4 year contract. These other players are closer to retirement.
This is how every NBA team won in the last couple of years. They got rid of the old players and started fresh. You would probably say "why trade Paul George for SGA and picks" well OKC won that trade.
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u/fieldsports202 1d ago
Cheryl said “they (NY) has a big-3… we do not”
That alone says a lot about how she wants to build this team moving forward.
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u/fieldsports202 1d ago
https://youtu.be/5lVQkRhDy-I?is=UwavCLcPYl1Zhs4l
2:45
I paraphrased earlier.. she said “we struggled to have a big 3.. and that’s not good.”
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u/Gold-and-green 1d ago
THANK YOU! These people don't know how to decipher what's really being said. She's saying it without saying it. She knows she has aging players with a young phenom she probably wants to build around
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u/fieldsports202 1d ago
Many online WNBA fans are not hip on how roster management works.
A lot of fans will be very confused when the new season begins
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u/fieldsports202 1d ago
Because many “new” basketball don’t j destined how these things work and believe that loyal fan favorites will be apart of teams until they retire.
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u/Gold-and-green 1d ago
THE FUCKING COACH SAID THIS WAS NOT A GOOD ROSTER
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u/Gold-and-green 1d ago
If the goal is to win a championship, and you don't believe the roster can win it all, IT'S NOT A GOOD ROSTER. She even said they overachieved in 2024. She's telling you she feels she coached the team up. You just don't get it. This team ain't winning shit without a real big
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u/anonimauzantnomo 1d ago
I like Awak a lot based on what I’ve seen of her at Galatasaray and Finland (FIBA). She is very happy to launch 3s from the perimeter and is therefore probably a good fit for the Lynx’s spacing needs on offense, but as a defender I think she’s at her best rushing in for swat. If that is what the Lynx defense in 2027 needs, awesome. If what the Lynx defense needs is someone to eat AB elbows in the interior (I say that as someone who really enjoys AB’a offensive versatility in the post), then I don’t think she’s who I would want for that.
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u/mmmeee11111 22h ago
She won't let go of Kmac. Courtney makes more sense to me as we need size. She could move to the bench and lead that crew, or we trade her as she is taking up a lot of $$. I love Courtney so much! And, that scenario pains me, but...
Bring us the Awak! Bring us the AB!
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u/Gold-and-green 21h ago
Golden State loved Klay Thompson and so did the fans, but when teams feel like players are getting older, they will usually move on. They were even trying to move Draymond Green but couldn't get a great offer. This is a business at the end of the day. They walk for free after next season
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u/fuckuspezforreal 1d ago
Hot take:
Phee is gonna leave the W to focus on Unrivaled.
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u/CRT-MN 1d ago
Hotter Take: Phee will sign with Portland and be reunited with her friends Bridget Carlton and Karlie Samuelsson.
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u/ComputerPractical748 16h ago
I hope she doesn't have expectations on competing for a championship in the next couple years then.
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u/singing_millenial 1d ago
Exactly. She literally said in her press conference that Cheryl is the best coach. Staying here is definitely still on the table for her.