Minnesota Lynx Make DiJonai Carrington Decision vs Valkyries

The Minnesota Lynx have announced DiJonai Carrington's status for their season finale.

Jun 12, 2024; Chicago, Illinois, USA; Connecticut Sun guard DiJonai Carrington (21) looks on during the first half of a basketball game against the Chicago Sky at Wintrust Arena. Mandatory Credit: Kamil Krzaczynski-Imagn Images / Kamil Krzaczynski-Imagn Images

The Minnesota Lynx control their destiny on Thursday night. Of course, the Lynx have had the one-seed locked up for about two weeks, but they still do not know who they will be facing in the first round of the playoffs. However, they get to choose their opponent on Thursday night.

The Lynx are hosting the Golden State Valkyries on Thursday for their regular-season finale. With a win, the Lynx will face the Valkyries in the first round, but a loss would match them up against the Seattle Storm.

What's on the line on the final day of the WNBA regular season? Thursday's games will decide the WNBA playoff seeds and first-round series and even impact the draft lottery. https://t.co/yStwcvjY9q

— ESPN Women's Hoops (@ESPN_WomenHoop) September 11, 2025

Of course, the Lynx will likely try to win regardless of these playoff scenarios, and they showed it by pulling Napheesa Collier off the injury report after she missed their last game due to rest. However, they will still be without one key player.

DiJonai Carrington's injury

The Lynx acquired DiJonai Carrington in a mid-season trade with the Dallas Wings, and the defensive-minded guard has come up huge for them. In 11 appearances, Carrington has averaged 8.6 points, 2.1 rebounds, 1.1 assists, and 1.2 steals per game with 48.5/45.5/76.0 shooting splits.

However, in her first game against her former team, the Wings, Carrington left early with a shoulder injury. Since then, Carrington has missed three consecutive games and is set to miss a fourth on Thursday night.

The Lynx have announced that Carrington will be sidelined for Thursday's season finale against the Valkyries as she recovers from her shoulder injury.

GAME STATUS REPORT@minnesotalynx vs Golden State Valkyries (9/11)

DiJonai Carrington - OUT (L. Shoulder)

— Lynx PR (@Lynx_PR) September 10, 2025

Luckily, Carrington is the only player on Minnesota's injury report with just one game until the playoffs, but they are certainly hoping that she is good to go for their playoff opener on Sunday.

The team has not announced any further updates about Carrington's injury, except for the fact that this is something that she has been dealing with throughout the entire 2025 season.

Even if Carrington were able to play on Thursday, the Lynx could have decided to keep her sidelined anyway, just to make sure she is healthier in time for the playoffs. Since the Lynx have already secured the top seed, Thursday night's outcome does not matter in that regard, but as aforementioned, it will decide who they play in the first round of the playoffs.

The Lynx and Valkyries are set to tip off at 8:00 p.m. ET in Minnesota on ESPN on Thursday night.

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