Napheesa Collier Is All Business

In Bustle’s The Pregame, we ask athletes about their pregame rituals. What do they wear for the infamous tunnel walk? How do they get in the zone? This week, sidle up to Minnesota Lynx star and Unrivaled co-founder Napheesa Collier.

In most ways, Napheesa Collier’s days don’t mirror your average 28-year-old’s. The 6-foot-1 forward has spent the last few months in Miami, escaping the Minneapolis snow to play 3-v-3 basketball in a newly renovated facility alongside fellow WNBA stars like Breanna Stewart and Angel Reese.

But in other ways, she’d fit perfectly in your group chat: listening to SZA on repeat, needing a Sephora trip to replenish her go-to lip gloss — the same one, ironically, that Sydney Sweeney and Lili Reinhart wear — and craving more zzz’s.

“I really need to be better with my sleep,” says Collier, who uses a Samsung Galaxy ring to track nighttime stats like restfulness and mental recovery. “I mean, eight hours would obviously be great, but if I get more than six, it’s really good.”

Last May, she and Stewart announced Unrivaled, their 3-v-3 league that sold out its inaugural season. With investors such as Stephen Curry, Megan Rapinoe, and Ashton Kutcher, the Florida-based league allows players to fine-tune their skills stateside while making bank — in the ballpark of $220,000 — during the W’s offseason.

For Collier and husband Alex Bazzell, who serves as Unrivaled’s president, the players’ well-being has been front of mind since the league’s inception. There’s an on-site day care, nursing room, aesthetician, and decked-out glam room, plus traditional training facility features. And Samsung Galaxy, a founding partner of the league, has outfitted the players with wearable technology like rings and watches.

“Having worked in sports for a very long time, probably the most interesting change that has happened over the past 20, 30 years is the technology revolution,” Micky Lawler, Unrivaled’s commissioner, told a group of journalists who visited last month. “And data is key. For athletes, it has become a fundamental insight into performance, into recovery, into strengths and weaknesses.”

Below, Collier — Unrivaled’s inaugural MVP with an average of 25.7 points per game — talks to Bustle about how she gets ready for tip-off.

What’s your routine for getting in the zone before a game?

I usually listen to music. I like SZA’s songs, like “30 For 30,” [because] I’m too pumped up, so it relaxes me. But I’ve actually been listening to Crime Junkie a lot. I like that podcast, something to take my mind off the game. And then, I’m superstitious, so I put everything on my left side first — like, left sock then right sock — and I have a peanut butter and jelly sandwich before every game.

Do you find that most players are superstitious?

I think athletes in general are pretty superstitious.

Did you develop your routine during college?

No, it was high school. [It might] have been earlier than that. In high school, I had to eat the same Panera sandwich, even though I was so sick of it, because I played good [during] one game.

Does it have to do with nerves? Do you get nervous before games?

I don’t know about “nervous,” because I say nervous and excitement are the same, so I choose “excitement.” I mean, my stomach has butterflies before every game.

At what point does it go away?

When tip-off happens, and first possession.

That makes sense. So besides PB&J, what foods do you rely on to stay energized?

The day before games, I definitely try to carb load, so I have pastas a lot. The day of games, I usually have a sandwich called Hook & Ladder from Firehouse. It has ham and turkey on it.

And how do you kind of think about hydration? Has your approach to it changed since it’s become trendy?

It actually has. I’m one of those “I don’t like the taste of water” [people], especially bottled water. But now I have this big tumbler I always try to finish, because I notice a difference in my energy and my skin. So I’ll put lemon in it, and salt for electrolytes.

Does that taste better?

I like it. You can barely taste the salt, but you need electrolytes for your body to absorb the water. And I don’t want to do it through sugar, so I’ll blend in salt or do the liquid IVs.

That makes sense. Do you have any lucky charms, or things you keep for good luck on game days?

I actually have to put on the same lip gloss.

Because you like it, or is it superstitious?

It’s superstitious, but I also like it. It looks dark, but it goes on pretty light. [Editor’s note: She uses the Armani Beauty Prisma Glass Hydrating Lip Gloss with Squalane.]

And you wear the silver Samsung Galaxy ring. Which features do you use the most?

The energy score. My daughter is not a great sleeper. She never has been. So when I put her down, I’m like, “This is my time to be by myself.” But then I’ll stay up for hours, and she wakes up so early. It’s a vicious cycle. So seeing that [score] is really helpful for me, like, “How bad was it last night?”

Did your sleep change during and after pregnancy?

Oh, dramatically. I used to get way more. I mean, I love taking naps. I would sleep a lot and I could stay up, but now I can’t sleep in anymore.

And what about meditation? Do you meditate at all?

Only to go to sleep. My mind will not turn off, so I use the Calm app. I have to really focus on the words, and when I do that, I fall asleep every time.

Was there a learning curve for you when you started that?

Actually, it’s had the opposite effect. It was so great in the beginning, but I’ve listened to it so many times that I know what it’s going to say now, so my mind has been wandering.

Speaking of mental energy: For you, what role does a head coach have in terms of mental preparedness?

My college coach, Geno Auriemma, and my coach now, Cheryl Reeve, are both so big on mental preparation that it’s become a habit for me. The coach sets the standard about what’s expected, and I’ve been really lucky with those two. The mental game is such a huge part of any sport. I believe it’s 80-20, with physical ability and mental toughness.

Which one’s the 80?

The 80 is mental.

So looking at Geno, how did he help you get in the right head space?

Before games, he would try to fire you up by saying, “You suck,” that kind of thing. But in practices, he teaches you mental toughness [and how to] be a smart basketball player. And they just run a tight ship [at the University of Connecticut]. Everything they do is very professional. Like, you’re going to look professional in the way you dress, in the way we’re warming up. We are taking this seriously every step of the way.

Do you think that you were naturally prone to that mindset?

I do. I think my parents raised me that way. The capability was there, but I think he honed it and brought it out. My freshman year was so, so hard. The mental growth I had to go through, in order to swim and not sink there, is what has made me into the basketball player I am now. That’s what he does with his players. He’s said multiple times that he breaks players down to build them back up, so that’s why I think you see so many UConn players in the W.

And with Cheryl, is it similar or different?

It’s pretty similar in terms of what she expects. I mean, even when we didn’t have private planes, we had to dress a certain way to the airport. Even when we were flying commercial, we couldn’t have family members on the flight.

Why do think that is?

She has the same approach, where “This is business, and we’re taking it seriously.”

This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.