The start of a new week means another new Lynx Offseason Update!
Though we know there is a lot going on outside of the game of basketball right now, we hope this gives you somewhat of an escape to think about sports and how it can unify all of us. Over the past week, Lynx players returned to the court and had some strong showings across the globe. Currently, 11 of the 12 Lynx players planning to play this offseason are hitting the hardwood, three in the country (soon to be four) and the rest playing outside of the country.
The 12 Lynx players are Courtney Williams, Alanna Smith, Natisha Hiedeman, Kayla McBride, Bridget Carlton, Jessica Shepard, Maia Hirsch, Dorka Juhász, Maria Kliundikova, Anastasiia Olairi Kosu, Camryn Taylor and Jaylyn Sherrod. Napheesa Collier, who was supposed to take part in Unrivaled, will miss the season due to having surgery on both ankles and missing a total of 4-6 months in recovery.
Let’s take a look at where those Lynx players are playing — and who is the last one yet to start — how they’ve done as of late and how they are performing so far this offseason.
Courtney Williams — Vinyl (Unrivaled)
Williams has returned to Unrivaled for the second season after being one of the first 32 players to make up the inaugural season a year ago. After spending last season with the Lunar Owls, Williams is on a new squad this season while suiting up for Team Vinyl.
With Vinyl, Williams has done a nice job in distributing and contributing on the boards despite having a bit of an up-and-down start to the year offensively. Over the past week, Williams had her best offensive performance of the Unrivaled season while contributing in nearly every aspect of the game in all three contests.
Season Stats:
Unrivaled: 7 games — 7.9 PPG, 5.6 RPG, 4.9 APG, 0.3 SPG, 0.1 BPG
Recent Games:
Jan. 19 vs. Lunar Owls (68-57 loss): 14 points (7-10 FG, 0-1 3Pt), five rebounds and four assists over 16 minutes
Jan. 23 vs. Phantom (78-69 loss): four points (2-6 FG), four rebounds and three assists over 11 minutes
Jan. 25 vs. Mist (76-71 loss): seven points (3-8 FG, 1-4 3Pt), six rebounds, four assists and one steal over 10 minutes
Alanna Smith — Mist (Unrivaled)
For the first time as a professional player, Smith is spending her offseason playing the United States rather than overseas like she has always done.
Smith has begun the season on The Mist, and she has helped her squad to a strong 3-1 start to the year while contributing offensively and on the boards while also being a lockdown presence in the paint defensively. Over the past week, she saw a bit of a dip in playing time and production, but still contributed to help her squad.
Season Stats:
Unrivaled: 7 games — 5.1 PPG, 3.9 RPG, 0.9 BPG, 0.3 APG, 0.3 SPG
Recent Games:
Jan. 19 vs. Breeze (83-64 loss): two points (0-2 FG), one rebound and one assist over five minutes
Jan. 23 vs. Rose (89-71 win): four points (2-4 FG, 0-2 3Pt), seven rebounds and one steal over eight minutes
Jan. 25 vs. Vinyl (76-71 win): four points (2-4 FG), three rebounds and one steal over nine minutes
Natisha Hiedeman — Hive (Unrivaled)
Hiedeman has also returned to Unrivaled for the second straight season after bouncing around to three different teams — Phantom, Laces and Rose — during the inaugural season. Hiedeman concluded the year with Rose and helped them to an Unrivaled Championship.
With Hive, one of the two newest teams to Unrivaled in 2026, Hiedeman had her best performance of the Unrivaled season thus far over the past week with a double-digit outing against the Laces.
Season Stats:
Unrivaled: 6 games — 4.2 PPG, 1.8 RPG, 1.7 APG, 0.2 SPG
Recent Games:
Jan. 24 vs. Laces (70-52 loss): 11 points (4-10 FG, 1-4 3Pt), two assists and one rebound over 10 minutes
Kayla McBride — Fenerbahçe (Turkey)
McBride is back at her second home in Turkey while returning to play for Turkish powerhouse Fenerbahçe. Though some expected her to return to play in Unrivaled this offseason, McBride chose to start the offseason overseas with a team that is special to her.
McBride began her season overseas strong, providing a two-way showing for the Turkish powerhouse. However, over the past week we learned that McBride would be sidelined with a soft tissue injury that will sideline her — which is better than the previously reported quad tear that ended up not being the case following a translation error in a post by Fenerbahçe on X.
Season Stats:
Turkey-KBSL: 9 games — 13.0 PPG, 4.6 RPG, 4.8 APG, 0.9 SPG
EuroLeague: 7 games — 14.6 PPG, 3.7 APG, 30 RPG, 1.7 SPG
Recent Games:
Jan. 14 vs. Landes (80-61 loss): seven points (3-10 FG, 1-4 3Pt), five rebounds, three assists and one steal over 28 minutes
Jan. 17 vs. Canakkale (129-43 win): 14 points (5-8 FG, 4-6 3Pt), 11 rebounds, eight assists and two steals over 16 minutes
Bridget Carleton — USK Praha (Czech Republic)
Carleton is in a new country this offseason, adding her seventh country she’s played in during her career along with Australia, Spain, Franco, Hungary, Israel and Turkey.
Carleton has done a little bit of everything in Czech Republic-ZBL and EuroLeague action this offseason, leaving her mark on multiple areas of the game like we’ve become used to seeing with the Lynx. Over the past week, Carleton displayed solid two-way play with a handful of steals and also reaching double figures in scoring in one of the two contests.
Season Stats:
Czech Republic-ZBL: 9 games — 11.7 PPG, 5.0 RPG, 2.2 APG, 1.6 SPG, 0.6 BPG
EuroLeague: 7 games — 12.0 PPG, 3.7 RPG, 1.7 APG, 1.4 SPG, 0.1 BPG
Recent Games:
Jan. 22 vs. Galatasaray (71-64 win): five points (1-3 FG, 0-1 3Pt), four rebounds, four steals and two assists over 26 minutes
Jan. 25 vs. Basket Ostrava (127-36 win): 15 points (6-8 FG, 3-4 3Pt), four rebounds, four assists, one block and one steal over 15 minutes
Jessica Shepard — Famila Schio (Italy)
Shepard is in a new country this offseason after spending last offseason in Greece, taking the court with Italian power Famila Schio. She has played in Greece, Israel and Italy so far in her career.
Shepard has put up some impressive numbers in Italy this offseason, once again being a double-double machine like we’ve been accustomed to seeing. Over the past week, Shepard had a strong showing with two double-doubles, one of which was a 30-point double-double.
Season Stats:
Italy-Serie A1: 13 games — 17.9 PPG, 8.8 RPG, 2.2 APG, 1.2 SPG
EuroLeague: 10 games — 17.1 PPG, 9.2 RPG, 2.6 APG, 1.5 SPG
Recent Games:
Jan. 22 vs. Girona (85-74 win): 31 points (14-19 FG), 11 rebounds, four assists and two steals over 34 minutes
Jan. 25 vs. Campobasso (67-47 win): 19 points (9-9 FG, 1-1 3Pt), 10 rebounds, five assists and two steals over 22 minutes
Maria Kliundikova — UMMC Ekateringburg (Russia)
Kliundiokva, who was a midseason arrival for Minnesota and ended up with a nice role off the bench for the Lynx, is back in her home country of Russia this offseason playing for UMMC Yekateringburg alongside soon-to-be second-year Lynx forward Anastasiia Olairi Kosu.
Kliundikova has put together a balanced offseason so far, helping her squad offensively and on the boards while also impacting other areas of the game. Over the past week, she had a well-rounded performance while impacting nearly every aspect of the game.
Season Stats:
Russia-PBL: 13 games — 11.9 PPG, 7.3 RPG, 2.5 APG, 1.2 SPG, 0.9 BPG
Recent Games:
Jan. 19 vs. Dynamo Kursk (103-93 loss): 12 points (6-9 FG, 0-2 3Pt), seven rebounds and six assists over 26 minutes
Jan. 25 vs. Enisey Krasnoyarsk (64-50 win): no stats available at the time of this story
Dorka Juhász — Galatasaray (Turkey)
Juhász is spending her WNBA offseason in a new country, playing in Turkey this season rather than Italy like we’ve seen in the past. Juhász, who sat out the 2025 WNBA campaign while remaining overseas, is still under contract with Minnesota through 2026.
Juhász has made an impact on both ends of the floor in both Turkey-KBSL and EuroLeague action, putting together balanced a showing in Turkey. Over the past week, Juhász put together a balanced performance despite not reaching double figures in scoring, recording a season high in steals.
Season Stats:
Turkey-KBSL: 10 games — 13.1 PPG, 5.7 RPG, 1.8 APG, 1.1 SPG, 0.8 BPG
EuroLeague: 12 games — 13.0 PPG, 7.7 RPG, 1.6 APG, 1.3 SPG, 1.0 BPG
Recent Games:
Jan. 22 vs. USK Praha (71-64 loss): eight points (3-11 FG, 1-4 3Pt), six rebounds and three steals over 31 minutes
Anastasiia Olairi Kosu — UMMC Ekateringburg (Russia)
Kosu is back home in Russia this offseason, playing with fellow Lynx teammate Maria Kliundikova with UMMC Yekateringburg.
Kosu, who Minnesota is hoping continues to develop leading into her second WNBA campaign, has gotten off to a nice start in Russia this offseason. Over the past week, Kosu failed to reach double figures in scoring but took care of business on the boards and defensively with a season high in rebounds and a trio of steals.
Season Stats:
Russia-PBL: 11 games — 11.4 PPG, 5.7 RPG, 1.6 SPG, 0.8 APG, 0.3 BPG
Recent Games:
Jan. 19 vs. Dynamo Kursk (103-93 loss): seven points (3-8 FG, 0-2 3Pt), 10 rebounds, three steals and two assists over 21 minutes
Jan. 25 vs. Enisey Krasnoyarsk (64-50 win): no stats available at the time of this story
Maia Hirsch — Charleville-Mezieres (France)
We have yet to see Hirsch in the WNBA after being drafted by the Lynx in the first round of the 2023 WNBA Draft, but she continues to play in France this offseason as she continues to develop.
After an up-and-down offseason last year, Hirsch is off to a nice start to this offseason with some additional time on the floor as well. Over the past week, Hirsch found some success from three and contributed nicely offensively and on the boards for her squad.
Season Stats:
Franco-BWL: 12 games — 8.0 PPG, 2.8 RPG, 0.6 APG, 0.2 SPG, 0.2 BPG
EuroLeague: 8 games — 6.9 PPG, 3.3 RPG, 1.1 APG, 0.6 SPG, 0.5 BPG
Recent Games:
Jan. 21 vs. Bourges (65-59 win): eight points (3-7 FG, 2-4 3Pt), three rebounds, two assists and one block over 31 minutes
Jan. 24 vs. Chamay (84-48 win): 11 points (4-8 FG, 3-5 3Pt) and four rebounds over 18 minutes
Camryn Taylor — Landerneau (France)
Taylor, who joined the Lynx late in the 2025 WNBA season and was part of the playoff run, has moved from Greece last offseason to France and Landerneau Bretagne Basket this year.
Taylor had a slow start to the offseason schedule, but has picked things up as of late with two straight double-digit outings. However, Taylor hasn’t appeared in any of the seven games since last playing on Nov. 29.
Season Stats:
France-BWL: 6 games — 5.2 PPG, 2.0 RPG, 0.2 APG, 0.2 SPG, 0.2 BPG
Recent Games:
Nov. 29 vs. Angers (75-67 win): 12 points (5-6 FG, 2-2 3Pt), two rebounds and one block over 19 minutes
Not Yet Underway
While the players listed above have already begun their seasons across the globe, one more Lynx player will remain in the country and will take part in Athletes Unlimited.
Jaylyn Sherrod is playing in the country this offseason, taking part in Athletes Unlimited’s fifth season.
Sherrod will be one of 40 players participating in the fast-paced, full-court, 5-on-5 league that begins in early February in Nashville.
That will do it for this week. As always, thank you for reading! We will catch up with you next week with another Lynx Offseason Update.