Napheesa Collier has been named the WNBA Rookie of the Month for the month of July. It is a well-deserved honor for a standout player in the league.

What a month it has been for Collier, playing in her first All-Star game as a rookie and holding down the fort in a key role for the Lynx.

Her teammates have been taking notice of Collier’s incredibly poised and consistent play for some time and finally the league has come around as well.

“Sometimes it’s not all about what’s in the stat sheet,” said Danielle Robinson at Wednesday’s practice. “She does a lot of intangible things that don’t show up on the stat sheet and she’s a leader for us. It doesn’t matter if she’s just a rookie in the way she communicates with us, the questions she asks, she’s always willing to learn.”

It is easy to play with Collier. She does whatever it takes to win games and it is obvious that she is not trying to run up her stats—she is working to help the team win.

“She does the dirty work, she blocks shots, she scores when she’s needed to score, and sometimes she’s even out there leading the pack. Being a leader,” said Sylvia Fowles. “She’s making sure she’s putting everybody in their spots. She’s doing everything.”

Doing what Collier has done is hard to begin with but it is the way in which she has done it that stands out. She has adjusted expertly to everything thrown her way and worked through position changes, injuries to teammates and a shifting role to make herself into a trusted and valuable part of Minnesota’s core.

“I think we got the best rookie of the crew during draft time,” said Fowles.

You won’t find many people around the league that disagree.