Cheryl Reeve Wins 2026 WNBA Executive of the Year After Lynx Swept from Playoffs Minnesota Lynx head coach and president of basketball operations Cheryl Reeve won her third WNBA Executive of the Year award, tying the record, less than two weeks after her top-seeded team was swept from the first round of the playoffs. Minnesota Lynx head coach and president of basketball operations Cheryl Reeve won the 2026 WNBA Executive of the Year award, the league announced Monday. The honor comes less than two weeks after her top-seeded Lynx were swept out of the first round of the playoffs by the eighth-seeded New York Liberty. Reeve appeared on 13 ballots, ahead of Atlanta Dream executive Dan Padover with 11 and Golden State's Ohemaa Nyanin with eight. Each of the WNBA's 15 teams had an executive on the voting panel, and voters could not select themselves. It is Reeve's third Executive of the Year award, tying Padover for the most selections in the award's history.Cheryl Reeve Wins Executive of the YearWith Monday's announcement, Reeve became the first person to win Coach of the Year and Executive of the Year in the same season twice. The recognition amounts to a substantial endorsement from her peers and also tacit approval of how one of the league's most outspoken left-wing figures represents her franchise. An executive helps establish what an organization stands for, and Reeve has made her politics a major part of that job.She consistently uses her WNBA platform to attack the motives of people who believe women's sports should be reserved for females. Her colleagues have now chosen to celebrate her leadership. That deserves scrutiny beyond a list of successful transactions. The league's announcement highlighted Reeve's selection of Olivia Miles with the No. 2 pick in the 2026 WNBA Draft.Miles went on to become the unanimous Rookie of the Year and set the league's rookie record. Miles averaged 19.8 points, 6.0 assists and 4.7 rebounds as a rookie and finished second in MVP voting. But the choice at No. 2 was awfully easy.The Dallas Wings used the No. 1 pick in the 2025 WNBA Draft to select Paige Bueckers and then used the No. 1 pick in the 2026 WNBA Draft to select Bueckers' girlfriend and former UConn teammate, Azzi Fudd. The Wings publicly praised Fudd's shooting. But pretending that their selection of Fudd was based entirely on her basketball skills is foolish. Fudd averaged 13.1 points, 1.8 assists and 1.7 rebounds.Minnesota Lynx Draft And Trade MovesMiles produced those numbers while playing slightly fewer minutes per game, shot better from the field and finished second in MVP voting. Reeve should probably send the Wings a thank-you note. Reeve also deserves credit for trades with the Chicago Sky. In April 2024, the Sky moved from No. 8 to No. 7 and acquired the rights to Nikolina Milić.Minnesota received Sika Koné, a 2025 second-round pick and the right to swap first-round picks with Chicago in 2026, along with the No. 8 selection. Chicago used No. 7 on Angel Reese. At the time of the deal, Minnesota was coming off a 19-21 season and Chicago an 18-22 season. In April 2025, Minnesota sent Chicago the No. 11 pick, which the Sky used on Hailey Van Lith, for Chicago's 2026 first-rounder outright.That deal canceled the earlier swap and allowed Minnesota to keep its own 2026 first-round pick, too. Reeve also signed Natasha Howard, who started all 44 games and earned an All-Star starting spot. Minnesota finished 33-11 and earned the No. 1 playoff seed. For all those advantages, Reeve's team could not win a playoff game.Lynx Eliminated By New York LibertyMinnesota became the first No. 1 seed in WNBA history to be eliminated by a No. 8 seed, and New York did it in a sweep. The Lynx had the unanimous Rookie of the Year, who also finished second in MVP voting. Napheesa Collier, one of the league's best players, missed time during the regular season but played in both playoff games. Reeve's four championships are part of her record.So is the fact that the most recent one came in 2017. In the nine seasons since, Minnesota has reached the Finals once, losing to New York in 2024. During that same stretch, Reeve has collected three Coach of the Year awards and all three of her Executive of the Year awards. If Reeve gets the credit for both building the roster and coaching it, she can answer for what that team did in the playoffs, too.After Minnesota's Sept. 24 regular-season finale, Reeve characterized the controversy involving male participation in women's sports as an attack on what she called the transgender community. Sophie Cunningham's comments also drew attention during the season, adding to the political profile Reeve has built on the league's platform.