MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Napheesa Collier had a particularly late start to her eighth season with the Minnesota Lynx, following surgery on both ankles that delayed her 2026 debut until just before the All-Star break.
After an abruptly disappointing finish for the Lynx in the WNBA playoffs, the smooth-shooting and defensively tough forward the team has tried to build a title contender around is uncertain to return.
Collier will be one of the most prominent players in the league to enter free agency before the 2027 season, along with Indiana Fever guard Kelsey Mitchell and Las Vegas Aces guard Jackie Young. Collier signed a one-year contract with Minnesota following the new collective bargaining agreement that brought a surge of higher salaries to the sport's biggest stars.
“Whatever she decides, we're both going to be OK,” head coach and president of basketball operations Cheryl Reeve said after the Lynx were swept in two games by the New York Liberty in the first round of the playoffs.
Collier was drafted with the sixth overall pick in 2019 out of Connecticut, two years after the Lynx won their last of four WNBA championships.
“What ‘Phee’ has given this franchise, we’re super proud of. And we’re super proud of the work we’ve poured into her,” Reeve said. “If she lands on being here, great. And if there’s something better for her, that’s life.”
Collier, for her part, was not ready to dive into such a major decision during her exit interview session with reporters so soon after the last game.
“I can tell you that I love it here. I love the organization. I love my team and everything like that, but I just haven’t had the time to give that any thought,” said Collier, who was limited to 16 games during the regular season and watched WNBA Rookie of the Year Olivia Miles carry the club in her absence.
The five-time All-Star and 2024 Defensive Player of the Year award winner had plenty of adjustments to make once she rejoined the lineup, with a true point guard in Miles and veteran Courtney Williams moving to the shooting guard spot. After the Lynx lost Game 1 to the Liberty, Reeve said she thought Collier needed to be more assertive on offense, one of many shortcomings for them in the series.
Collier is eager for a full offseason to work on her game without the rehabilitation process dominating her time. The 30-year-old expressed confidence that the Lynx with their current core are good enough to win a title, despite a second straight early exit from the playoffs as the No. 1 seed. But there's a possibility they'll take their next swing without her.
“Of course I don’t want that to be my last game with ‘Phee,’ and she knows that, but I also want her to figure out what this next chapter looks like for her and make the best decision for her,” teammate Kayla McBride said. “I want that to be here of course, but I just want her to choose her.”
See AP’s full WNBA coverage here
Minnesota Lynx forward Napheesa Collier (24) reacts to a call during the second half of Game 2 of a WNBA basketball first-round playoff series against the New York Liberty, Tuesday, Sept. 29, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Heather Khalifa)
Minnesota Lynx forward Napheesa Collier reacts during the second half of Game 1 in the first round of the WNBA basketball playoffs against the New York Liberty, Sunday, Sept. 27, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Ellen Schmidt)
Minnesota Lynx forward Napheesa Collier stands behind Minnesota Lynx head coach Cheryl Reeve before Game 2 of a WNBA basketball first-round playoff series against the New York Liberty, Tuesday, Sept. 29, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Heather Khalifa)
CHICAGO (AP) — It’s official: Skydance-owned Paramount closed its $81 billion takeover of Warner Bros. Discovery on Tuesday, ushering in a new Hollywood giant.
The merger brings two of America’s oldest moviemaking studios together under a new name: Skydance. The deal, which followed a tumultuous, roughly yearlong fight, further concentrates power in an industry already run by just a handful of major players.
HBO Max, titles ranging from “Harry Potter” to “Sinners” and networks such as CNN now find themselves under the same roof as Paramount+, CBS and the likes of “Top Gun” and “The Godfather.” All are under the helm of billionaire David Ellison and his new co-CEO Ynon Kreiz.
“Today is a historic day, not just for Skydance but for our entire industry,” Ellison said in a statement. “We couldn’t be more excited to get to work.”
Including billions of dollars in debt, the Warner acquisition amounts to nearly $111 billion.
Ellison’s Skydance bought Paramount for $8 billion last year before setting its sights on Warner. What followed was one of the biggest tie-ups ever in the media and entertainment industry.
Politics loomed over much of the process. The Ellison family has held a long relationship with President Donald Trump, who said Tuesday that Skydance is “going to be a great company.”
The early days of Paramount's quest for Warner turned into a messy bidding war.
Months after disclosing it was open to selling all or part of its business, Warner initially struck a studio and streaming deal with Netflix in December.
But Paramount said it also had made offers that Warner management “never engaged meaningfully” with. It soon launched a hostile counterbid.
The Hollywood giants spent much of early 2026 in a heated back-and-forth over who had a stronger offer, with Warner leadership repeatedly backing Netflix as its preferred suitor. But Netflix bowed out after Paramount eventually upped its offer to buy all of Warner for $31 per share.
Warner and Paramount inked a mutual merger agreement in late February.
Hollywood was closely watching the fight over Warner's future. From awards shows to online petitions, A-list celebrities and other creatives made their voices known.
In April, thousands of movie stars, writers, directors and other professionals announced their “unequivocal opposition” to the Paramount-Warner merger. An open letter — which was signed by long-outspoken critics of the deal like Jane Fonda and Mark Ruffalo, as well as Hollywood heavyweights from Denis Villeneuve to J.J. Abrams — warned of fewer jobs and “less choice for audiences in the United States and around the world.”
Others lined up to back Paramount as Ellison reiterated his commitments to the movies. At CinemaCon, the company debuted a glossy mini movie about the studio directed by Jon M. Chu and narrated by Tom Cruise — who ended the spot atop the iconic Paramount water tower, with the words “the future is paramount and the future looks pretty great from here.” Director James Cameron also doubled down on his support of Ellison.
The prospect of a new Warner owner also loomed over awards season, from #BlockTheMerger pins to more subtle nods in acceptance speeches. When accepting her Emmy last month, “Remarkably Bright Creatures” actor Sally Field — who also signed the open letter in opposition to the Paramount-Warner deal — stressed that “unique storytelling matters” and “we can’t let those voices be silenced, or compromised or merged.”
Many industry critics were also outspoken when Netflix's studio and streaming deal was on the table, with a particular focus on the future of movies staying in theaters.
Critics are also watching what happens with CNN under Skydance.
Trump has regularly attacked reporting he deems unfavorable at CNN (most recently attempting to bar the outlet from the White House altogether). Over the course of the Warner buyout, his administration chimed in about hopes for a new owner.
Days after Paramount launched its hostile bid for Warner, Trump said that CNN spread “poison and lies” and “it’s imperative that CNN be sold.”
The White House took aim again at CNN in March, over the network's coverage of the U.S.-Israeli war against Iran. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth told reporters that “the sooner David Ellison takes over that network, the better.”
After the deal closed, Trump called it a “great” merger. “I’m glad they let it go,” he added.
Ellison has said editorial independence will be maintained at CNN. Skydance is retaining Mark Thompson as CNN’s editor-in-chief.
Under a settlement finalized last month with states that had sued over the takeover, the company agreed to form a “News Editorial Independence Board.”
Critics point to turmoil already seen at CBS under Skydance ownership and aren’t convinced this new body will be able to do much, because Ellison is set to have ample oversight over appointments.
Ellison has maintained a close relationship with Trump. He reportedly hosted a dinner in Washington in Trump’s honor in April, on the same day Warner shareholders gave their green light for the merger. In June, just two days after the Justice Department said it wouldn't intervene in the deal, Ellison attended an Ultimate Fighting Championship match on the White House lawn for Trump’s 80th birthday (streamed by Paramount+).
To help fund its Warner buyout, Paramount racked up billions of dollars in financial backing from three Gulf countries: Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates. The Federal Communications Commission approved the company’s request for sizable indirect ownership from those foreign investors.
Paramount previously disclosed it expected those funds to indirectly own nearly 50% of equity interests — but no voting rights — of Skydance. But the company asked for clearance of up to 100% to account for potential future investments, which the FCC granted, citing in part that access to more capital would strengthen the broadcast industry and was therefore “in the public interest.”
The FCC’s sole Democratic commissioner, Anna Gomez, and other critics have called the move alarming and unprecedented. They argue that amount of money opens the door to behind-the-scenes influence.
Paramount cleared antitrust hurdles for its Warner acquisition from the Justice Department and regulators worldwide over the summer.
But in July, Democratic attorneys general from 12 states — led by California's Rob Bonta — sued to block the merger, alleging the combined company would “extinguish competition” and lead to fewer choices for consumers, particularly movie theatergoers and cable customers across the U.S.
The Writers Guild of America followed suit.
Settlements emerged in September. The states' terms, approved by a judge, include pledges from the company to increase film production in the U.S. over the next five years, commit millions of dollars to a fund aimed at supporting workers displaced by the merger and establish new editorial monitoring of CNN and CBS.
Critics said the remedies were too weak, but the settlements cleared the way for the deal to close.
Associated Press reporter Jonathan J. Cooper in Phoenix contributed.
An aerial view shows Warner Bros. Studios in Burbank, Calif., Tuesday, Oct. 6, 2026. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)
A Skydance billboard is displayed outside Paramount Global office in Times Square, Tuesday, Oct. 6, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)
FILE - The Warner Bros. water tower is seen at Warner Bros. Studios in Burbank, Calif., on Dec. 5, 2025. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong, File)
