MINNEAPOLIS — As fans around her cheered and exchanged high-fives, Napheesa Collier ran to the front row and hugged former Minnesota Lynx star Lindsay Whalen. She then danced as Kool with her teammates & The gang’s “celebration” echoed throughout the Target Center.

Collier added another triumph to her burgeoning legacy, leading a group of blue-collar talent to the WNBA Finals with an 88-77 victory over the Connecticut Sun in Game 5 on Tuesday night. The Lynx will face the New York Liberty for the championship, stamping a new chapter for a franchise that once dominated the WNBA during a four-title run from 2011 to 2017 but is making its first trip to the Finals since then.

“The fact that we worked so hard and really like each other so much just makes everything better,” said Collier, who finished with 27 points, 11 rebounds, four assists and four blocks. “It also makes you want to win for them. It’s not just that you want the distinction of winning a championship. You want to do it for your teammates too. I think that makes the ride so much more enjoyable. We want to continue playing because we want to stay together.

Minneapolis is a city full of young stars, but Collier is now the queen. Timberwolves guard Anthony Edwards and Vikings receiver Justin Jefferson are two of the best players in their respective leagues, but only Collier can take credit for leading their team to the brink of a championship.

She was fearless during the playoffs. In the first round, she said she wanted to retire Phoenix Mercury star Diana Taurasi, who had toyed with the possibility of ending her successful career during the 2024 season. Collier scored 42 points in the second game of that series, setting a WNBA postseason record. She also said she wants to challenge A’ja Wilson for the MVP award next season and will now face a Liberty team that defeated Wilson and the Las Vegas Aces in the semifinals.

“She’s talented,” Sun head coach Stephanie White said of Collier. “She has incredible footwork, her pace, her poise. She won’t let herself be rushed. Just think about how she played in college and basically just her development as a guard. She shoots the 3. She attacks from the jump. “She has great post moves. She simply has everything you could want in a player.

As a child, Collier watched Maya Moore and tried to emulate her hometown hero, who, like her, grew up in Jefferson City, Missouri, and played at UConn. But Moore competed with a team full of future Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame athletes who combined to win four WNBA titles. That’s why the jerseys of Moore, Whalen, Rebekkah Brunson and Seimone Augustus are all retired and hang in the Target Center rafters, a tangible symbol that the Lynx once ran this league.

But Collier, selected sixth overall in the 2019 WNBA draft, was the anchor of a group this season that lacked that collective star power. But the grit, chemistry and versatility of the WNBA’s best 3-point shooting team and second-best defensive team were key features in a memorable run to the Finals, perhaps the most impressive journey of Cheryl Reeves’ career.

The Atlanta Dream signed Courtney Williams, who finished with 24 points on Tuesday, in 2021. That same year, the Sun released Bridget Carleton (44.4 percent from the 3-point line that season) after just four appearances with the franchise. And the Indiana Fever thwarted Alanna Smith (seven points, two blocks in Game 5), who made just one start in the first four years of her WNBA career.

“We didn’t scare anyone,” Reeve said. “I’m not sure anyone at any point in the season said, ‘Yeah, they have a real chance to win a championship,’ other than the people who are in our corner. And I think that’s what we need to continue to do.” Making believers.”

The Lynx got off to a flying start on Tuesday. They took control when Kayla McBride (19 points) hit back-to-back 3-pointers late in the first quarter to give Minnesota an 11-point lead Williams fouled Dijonai Carrington with a 3-pointer late in the second quarter. After making her free throw to complete the four-point play, the Lynx led 48-30 with 1:59 left in the half .

The Sun had given up 53 points at halftime and entered the break trailing by 19 points, both season highs for the WNBA’s No. 1 defense.

“I can’t even tell you what happened,” Sun star DeWanna Bonner said. “I think they just punched us in the face and we were completely shocked. We couldn’t defend ourselves.”

The fast-paced, high-energy style of basketball the Lynx played on Tuesday appears more likely to generate excitement next week at Barclays Center than the Sun’s methodical, defensive approach.

However, the task ahead will be unlike anything the Lynx have faced in the playoffs before. The Liberty are playing their best basketball and the Aces had few answers for Breanna Stewart and Sabrina Ionescu.

However, with Collier at the helm, the chances didn’t matter much for the Lynx this season. They have a 3-1 record against the Liberty this season, with Collier averaging 17.2 points per game in those four games.

“It’s really gratifying to be here, but we still have a lot of work to do,” Collier said. “It feels good. I think we’re enjoying the ride. I mean, it would be nice to finish (the WNBA Finals) in three (games) and not have to play after five to stay together.”

Reeve interrupted him.

“You have to cut them off,” joked the head coach.

The problem so far in the playoffs, however, has been that no team has been able to do something like that to Collier.