"Love letters postgame": Napheesa Collier's teammate Alanna Smith exposes vile social media abuse from fan

It's not easy being a professional athlete. On top of all the hard work and sacrifice they have to make day in and day out, they also have to put up with hateful comments from opposing fans.

That was the case again when Napheesa Collier and the Minnesota Lynx took down the Chicago Sky to get their second consecutive win.

Collier took to Instagram to call out the hateful fan, who left a series of negative comments on her profile, even wishing her a major injury:

"When you catch that injury know I prayed on it! Lit candles with jersey number," the fan commented.

"Can't wait till this iguana get injured," the fan added. "Hope that knee pop all the out on you next."

"Wishing you the worst karma experience for the rest of your life," she added.

Even so, the Lynx superstar seemed unbothered and took those comments lightly, poking the bear again by exposing the fan on her profile:

"Love letters postgame," Collier wrote on the story.

Collier had another strong outing in the win over the Sky, dominating with 21 points and seven rebounds to continue her MVP-caliber campaign.

So far, she's averaged a whopping 24.3 points, 8.0 rebounds, 3.3 assists and 1.6 steals per game on 52.8% from the floor for the 17-2 Lynx.

Napheesa Collier shuts down WNBA conspiracy theory

Collier has also been in the headlines for the wrong reasons. One fan went viral after putting together a conspiracy theory claiming that Collier and Breanna Stewart would sabotage the WNBA by forcing a lockout so more players can commit to playing in Unrivaled.

That's why the Lynx star took to social media to shut down that theory once and for all:

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"So let me get this straight.... While everyone else was enjoying fireworks, you were thinking about how me and & Stewie of all people are conspiring to force a lockout that would result in less money year-round for WNBA players??" Collier posted on X with several laughing face emojis.

Collier and Stewart founded Unrivaled to give WNBA players a viable alternative to playing overseas during the offseason, allowing them to earn a comparable income without facing the risks associated with international play, as seen in Brittney Griner’s case in Russia.

So, while a lockout might technically benefit the league in some ways, it would directly contradict the very principles on which Unrivaled was built.

About the author

Ernesto Cova is a journalist at Sportskeeda with a PhD in Sports Psychology. His education helped him develop a clearer understanding of the sports world as a whole, including basketball. Ernesto has over eight years of experience in the field, working for Fadeaway World, The Inquisitr, NBA Blast, The Cold Wire and Bolavip, among others.

His favorite team is the Chicago Bulls because of the Michael Jordan era. Jordan is Ernesto's all-time favorite, as he changed the game forever. Ernesto's second favorite was Kobe Bryant because he embodied that same competitive fire and Ernesto watched him play throughout his entire career. Nowadays, Ernesto really likes Stephen Curry, who he believes to be the most influential player of the past 15 years or so.

Ernesto's favorite basketball moment was when Venezuela -- his country -- took down Canada to take home the 2015 FIBA Americas Cup.

When not watching or writing about basketball, Ernesto likes to read and is interested in photography.

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Edited by Nadim El Kak