2025 Player of the Year
The candidates are:
Amaya Battle, Minnesota Gophers Women, 5-11, point guard. Battle is the heart and soul of the Gopher women, especially in the absence of her high school rival and college teammate Mara Braun, who has been beset by injuries for the better part of 2 years. Battle handles, protects and distributes the ball; she guards the opposition players who do the same; and she shoots it a little more than she might if Braun were here. It added up to 13 ppg-5 reb-4 ast-2 stls, and 41% shooting. Her ball-handling makes her the #1 most invaluable Gopher even when Braun is on the floor.
Napheesa Collier, Minnesota Lynx, 6-1, power forward. Collier averaged 23 ppg-7 reb-3 ast-2 stls, and shot 53% from the field. She was a solid favorite for WNBA player of the year, leading the Lynx to the league’s best record, when she got hurt and missed 7 games. The Las Vegas Aces happened to go on a 17 game winning streak about the same time, and by the time all was said and done Vegas’ Aja Wilson had surpassed Collier for the MVP award, not to mention her 3rd WNBA title. Collier meanwhile became embroiled in the league’s controversy du jour, regarding its inexecrable officiating. The controversy had raged all year, but came to a head when Phoenix’ Alyssa Thomas ran down Collier, knocked her to the ground, and stole the ball. No foul was called, and Wolves coach Cheryl Reeve called it “f*cking malpractice.” The league shot the messenger: Reeve was fined a million dollars or something, and was suspended from game 4 of the playoff series. Collier, meanwhile, sat out with an ankle injury caused by Thomas’ bull rush. After going 23-7-3-2 in the regular season, her line was 21-7-2 and 54% in the playoffs.
Anthony Edwards, Minnesota Timberwolves, 6-4, shooting guard. Edwards has become one of the NBA’s leading stars, twice making 2nd team all-NBA and scoring 28 ppg in 2024-2025 with 6 reb-4 ast and 45% shooting from the field. He led the NBA in 3-point buckets. He enjoyed no controversies like Collier’s, though the Nuggets and Thunder somewhat took him out of his normal offensive routines in the playoffs. His scoring dropped from 28 to 25 though his shooting remained at 45%. Still, he was criticized for not “adjusting.” Edwards said that, given the double-teaming defenses, he made the right plays, moving the ball to open teammates. The fact is the Wolves did as well as could be expected, knocking off the Lakers and Warriors, both 4 games to 1. Neither they nor anybody else was going to beat the Thunder.
Dawson Garcia, Minnesota Gopher Men, 6-11, center-power forward. Garcia completed his 3rd season as a Minnesota Gopher, and one shudders to think where the Gophers might have been those 3 years without him. He scored 15, 18 and 19 ppg while shooting 46, 49 and 47%, and 35% on 3s.
Maddyn Greenway, Providence Lions Girls, 5-8, combo guard. Greenway may be the best Minnesota high school girl basketball player ever. Yeah, sure. Paige Bueckers says hi. But Greenway will finish her career next March with 5 state championship and well over 5,000 points. Sure, she plays in Class AA but twice, in 2023 and 2025, Providence beat the Class AAAA runner-up (in 2023) and champion (in 2025) Hopkins. In 2023, Providence won 87-80, and Hopkins lost to St. Michael 71-70 in the AAAA final. In 2025, Hopkins beat Maple Grove 81-67 in AAAA, but Providence beat Hopkins 66-59. She didn’t win Ms. Basketball last year only because you have to be a senior to win it. Only an injury could possibly slow Greenway down in 2026. Nobody has ever slowed her down yet.
Antwan Kimmons, Concordia St. Paul, 6-0, combo guard. Kimmons was national D2 player of the year with 25 ppg-6 reb-6 asts and 54% shooting from the field. Not only that, but he led CSP to the NSIC regular season title (tied with Southwest State, but winning the tie-breaker and the #1 seed). They won one NCAA tournament game before losing to Washburn (Kansas) 94-78. It was Washburn that also ousted Minnesota State-Moorhead 93-65. And this was a program with precious little previous success—just 6 winning records this century, none since 2011, and a 30-153 record in the NSIC since 2016. This year the turnaround was from 10-18 to 22-9.
Emma Kniefel, Gustavus Adolphus, 5-9, combo guard. Kniefel, from Medford, made all-conference for the MIAC regular season and playoff champions and NCAA Elite 8 participant. That seems to me to be faint praise. Not to take anything away from PoY Peyton Starks of Macalester, a 3-time MIAC scoring leader, or Elly Schmitz of Bethel, the defensive PoY. But in 4 years at Gustavus, Kniefel’s teams won 107 games and lost 15. Now, obviously, other women had something to do with that. In the past 4 years, she led the Gusties in scoring 3 times and averaged 12.5 ppg-3.5 reb-2.5 asts-1 stls. She almost always guarded the opposition’s best player and/or ball-handler, and she almost always disrupted the opponent’s schemes. She was the 20th player to be all-MIAC 4 times, and she made all-MIAC tournament 3 times. She was the heart and soul of a Gustavus program that was virtually unbeatable for 4 years.
Bri Stoltzman, Southwest State Mustangs Women, 5-8, poiunt guard. Two-time NSIC player of the year, and she led the Mustangs to a 16-6 record in the conference last year, good for a 1st place tie and a #2 seed.
Ryan Thissen, St. John’s Johnnies, 6-6, wing. Scored 14, 13, 18 and 14 ppg in 4 seasons and made all-MIAC 3 times. The Johnnies were 85-25 in his 4 years.
Chase Thompson, Alexandria Cardinals, 6-8, forward. Averaged 25 ppg-10 reb-4 asts and was rated the #94 player in the country. He scored 28 points with 7 reb-4 asts in the state final, a 73-64 win over Mankato East.
Courtney Williams, Minnesota Lynx, 5-8, point guard. Williams is the Lynx’ energizer bunny. She gives up a lot of size to WNBA guards, but they give up a lot of spunk and quickness to Williams. On the whole, Williams wins. She averaged 14 ppg-5 reb-6 asts and shot 43% this year, and 16 ppg-5 reb-6 ast-3 stls and 44% in the playoffs.
And the Winner Is….
5. Emma Kniefel, Gustavus Adolphus Gusties Women, combo guard
4. Courtney Williams, Minnesota Lynx, point guard
3. Anthony Edwards, Minnesota Timberwolves, shooting guard. As a consolation, Ant was our player of the year a year ago.
2. Napheesa Collier, Minnesota Lynx, power forward
1. Maddyn Greenway, Providence Lions Girls, combo guard. Wins the award on the basis that she best fits the description “amazing.” I mean, Edwards and Collier are amazing in the way that other players have been amazing, too. There has never been a player quite like Greenway.