The Minnesota Lynx saw a close contest with the Atlanta Dream on Sunday, ultimately suffering an 81-89 defeat against the Dream. However, what caught viewers’ attention was an unfortunate collision rookie guard Olivia Miles suffered.

With less than a minute left on the clock, Miles went in for a layup in the fourth quarter of the game. But she misjudged her momentum and collided with the camera setup at the court baseline.

Although she was able to get up and walk to the bench by herself, cameras caught her limping a little, according to an X post by WNBA reporter Meghan L. Hall .

“Olivia Miles was briefly down. She is limping as she walks to the bench with 53.4 remaining. She ran into a camera person. Her momentum took her into the person. She was able to get up and walk off on her own power,” Hall posted on X.

According to another X post by WNBA reporter Meghan L. Hall’s X post, soon after Miles limped back to the bench, teammate Kayla McBride and Dream guard Jordin Canada went to check on her in a wholesome display of sportsmanship.

While the Lynx haven’t made any announcement regarding Miles’ status, it seemed the collision didn’t lead to serious injury concerns. 

However, the game earned Miles criticism from fans. Although she scored 21 points before the fourth-quarter accident, her lack of assists throughout the game was glaring and earned her no brownie points.

Miles gets criticized by fans following the Lynx’s 81-89 defeat against the Dream

Fans flooded the comments section of Hall’s X post showing Miles limping off the court, and the sentiment was not gracious. While some WNBA enthusiasts called her “dramatic”, others felt that the rookie’s development had plateaued.

“Miles is so dramatic when she loosin,” one commenter said, believing that the Lynx rookie was playing up her injury.

Others expressed their skepticism by suggesting that most rookies hit a wall towards the end of the season, and believed that Olivia Miles was no different.

“Olivia probably shouldn’t have been in the game at that point but she’s a competitor! Many of these Rookies will hit wall and the timing of the World Cup is perfect for these rooks to get their feet back under them,” one such critic wrote.

Another X user agreed, even adding that Miles not being on the USA national team was a best-case scenario.

“First sign that Olivia is mortal. Her meteoric has hit a plateau. Bound to come at some point. This 18-day FIBA break can't come soon enough for Liv. A re-set is in order. The fact that she is NOT on Team USA may turn out to be a blessing in disguise also,” the user commented.

Others criticized the rookie directly for failing to record any assists during the game, especially since Minnesota has the No. 1 seed in the WNBA playoffs.

“0 assists is crazy for a PG, especially with the best team in the league,” they observed.

Yet others believed that Miles needed to work on her physicality, since she was no longer playing college basketball. They believed postseason in the league would be just as intense, if not more.

“Looooooong season for any first year player and this is the pros not college, time to get your big girl pants on, playoffs are coming, and the physicality is really going to ramp up then, and Cheryl crying about isn't going to change that,” one such critic wrote.

Although Sunday’s game proved to be a low point for Minnesota and for Olivia Miles in particular, the rookie player isn’t likely to miss any games due to the collision. 

So, as the Lynx head coach Cheryl Reeve said during the post-game presser, it was a good opportunity for the team to assess their weaknesses and prepare for the postseason.

Written by

Arundhoti Palit

Edited by

Arundhoti Palit