Cheryl Reeve's 13 Ballots Make Her a Three-Time WNBA Executive of the Year

Photo: WNBA.com. Cheryl Reeve, Minnesota Lynx head coach and president of basketball operations.

Cheryl Reeve was named the 2026 WNBA Basketball Executive of the Year on Monday after appearing on 13 of the 15 ballots cast by one executive from each team. It is her third win after 2019 and 2024, which ties Atlanta's Dan Padover for the most in the award's history and makes her the first person to win Executive of the Year and Coach of the Year in the same season twice.

How the ballot works

Each voter ranked three executives and could not pick themselves. The winner is whoever shows up on the most ballots, and the league did not publish first-place counts. Reeve finished at 13. Padover had 11, Golden State's Ohemaa Nyanin had 8, Dallas's Curt Miller had 5, Portland's Vanja Černivec had 4, Washington's Michael Winger had 3 and Toronto's Monica Wright Rogers had 1.

Look at who finished second and third. Padover's Dream and Nyanin's Valkyries are the two teams left, and they open the WNBA Finals at Chase Center on Oct. 17. Reeve's Lynx went home in the first round, swept 2-0 by the No. 8 Liberty, 91-75 and 87-71. Minnesota became the first No. 1 seed in WNBA playoff history swept in an opening series. Every line in the league's case for Reeve comes from the 44-game regular season.

The regular-season case

The season itself holds up. Minnesota went 33-11, took the No. 1 seed, set a WNBA record with 18 road wins and ran off 10 straight from July 11 to Aug. 12, its longest streak since 2016.

The two adds carried the vote. Reeve took Olivia Miles with the No. 2 pick in April. Miles won Rookie of the Year unanimously and set the league's rookie scoring record at 790 points. Reeve also signed Natasha Howard, who started all 44 games and was voted an All-Star starter.

That build came after the expansion draft took two rotation pieces. Portland claimed Bridget Carleton and Toronto claimed Maria Kliundikova on April 3, per Basketball-Reference's transaction log. Within two weeks the Lynx had Napheesa Collier, Courtney Williams and Kayla McBride under contract again, drafted Miles and added Howard.

Where the build ran out

The Liberty series is the asterisk. In Game 2 at Barclays, Miles went 1-of-8 for 5 points in 17 minutes. Collier finished with 14 points and 5 fouls. New York scored 44 points in the paint to Minnesota's 28, and the Lynx led for 3 minutes and 23 seconds across both games.

A rookie guard's first playoff series against a former champion is a hard place to grade a roster. The executive panel graded the 44 regular-season games.

Coach and executive in one season

Reeve holds both jobs in Minneapolis, coach and president of basketball operations. Miller, now in Dallas, is the only other person to win both awards in one season, with Connecticut in 2017. Reeve has now done it in 2024 and 2026.

The coaching side of 2026 came first. On Sept. 28 she won Coach of the Year for a record fifth time, on 40 of 74 media votes, ahead of Natalie Nakase's 20 and Sydney Johnson's 14. On July 8 against Connecticut she earned her 380th regular-season win to pass every coach in league history, and she finished the season at 397. The Lynx also list her in the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame Class of 2026.

Sources

• WNBA.com: Cheryl Reeve Wins 2026 WNBA Basketball Executive of the Year. Oct. 12, 2026. 13 of 15 ballots. Padover 11, Nyanin 8, Miller 5, Černivec 4, Winger 3, Wright Rogers 1. voting format. third win (2019, 2024, 2026) ties Padover. first to win both awards in one season twice. Miller 2017. 33-11, No. 1 seed, record 18 road wins, 10-game streak July 11 to Aug. 12. Miles No. 2 pick, unanimous ROY, rookie-record 790 points. Howard 44 starts, All-Star starter. 380th win July 8, 397 career.
• Yahoo Sports: Lynx's Cheryl Reeve named WNBA Executive of the Year for record third time. Chris Cwik. Oct. 12, 2026.
• WNBA on X. Oct. 12, 2026.
• WNBA.com: Cheryl Reeve Wins 2026 Coach of the Year Award. Sept. 28, 2026. Record fifth COY, 40 of 74 votes. Nakase 20, Johnson 14.
• Basketball-Reference: Cheryl Reeve executive record.
• Basketball-Reference: 2026 Minnesota Lynx transactions. Carleton to Portland and Kliundikova to Toronto, April 3. Howard, McBride, Williams signed April 12. Miles drafted April 13. Collier signed April 16.
• Minnesota Lynx: Cheryl Reeve bio. Women's Basketball Hall of Fame Class of 2026.
• ESPN box score: Liberty @ Lynx, Game 1. Sept. 27, 2026. Liberty 91, Lynx 75.
• ESPN box score: Lynx @ Liberty, Game 2. Also ESPN matchup stats. Sept. 29, 2026. 87-71. Miles 1-of-8, 5 points, 17 minutes. Collier 14, 5 fouls. Paint 44-28.
• Alexa Philippou on X and lead time. Sept. 29, 2026. First No. 1 seed swept in an opening series. Lynx led 3:23 in the series.