A number of months into negotiations for a brand new collective bargaining settlement, it seems the Girls's Nationwide Basketball Gamers Affiliation and WNBA have made little progress in hanging a deal earlier than the present contract expires after this season.
The WNBPA acquired its first response from the WNBA final month, which Mercury star Satou Sabally not too long ago referred to as a “slap within the face.”
Talking after Liberty apply Saturday, WNBPA vp Breanna Stewart mentioned the league's response was “fairly polar reverse” to the gamers union's preliminary proposal.
“That was the toughest half,” Stewart mentioned. “It's like, we're not even speaking about the identical factor proper now. We're speaking about X's and O's at this level and utterly completely different sides of the sport.”
The sluggish negotiation course of between the 2 events is gearing up for what Stewart believes shall be a “spicy” assembly between gamers and the league in Indianapolis throughout All-Star weekend later this month.
The stakes for this CBA are a lot completely different than previous years.
The WNBA has exploded in reputation, and the gamers wish to reap the fruits of their labor.
TV viewership and attendance is up. Final yr, the WNBA introduced an 11-year media rights deal that's valued at a whopping $2.2 billion.
And simply this week, the WNBA introduced that it'll increase to 18 franchises by 2030, with Cleveland, Detroit and Philadelphia every reportedly paying a $250 million growth charge.
The gamers opted out of the present deal final October, which gave the union and WNBA a yr to hash out a brand new contract.
the face.” IMAGN IMAGES through Reuters Join
However with solely 118 days till the present CBA expires, there seems to be loads of work to be performed.
The gamers have been open about their need for income sharing, elevated salaries, expanded rosters and having a seat on the desk for media rights negotiations amongst different issues.
The WNBPA mentioned it despatched a number of proposals to the WNBA over the previous few months, however didn't obtain an official response till June.
WNBPA president Nneka Ogwumike mentioned it took awhile for the league to counter as a result of it didn't settle for the union's preliminary drafts as legit proposals.
Ogwumike and the remainder of the union went again to the drafting board and added extra particulars. The gamers held conferences two or thrice every week even after the season began.
“It's been made clear that this notion that the gamers don't perceive the enterprise,” Ogwumike informed reporters after Storm apply Saturday. “[WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert] informed me that to my face myself.”
Dream on June 29, 2025. NBAE through Getty Photographs
Ogwumike believes the gamers have submitted a “truthful” bid.
“We wish to have a rising portion of the income share,” she mentioned. “We wish this league to be precisely what it's right this moment and extra. So I'm hoping that one thing constructive progressive yields from this assembly that we'll have in Indy.”
WNBPA government director Terri Carmichael Jackson mentioned in Could that the union is dedicated to negotiating “for so long as it takes” on a brand new CBA and didn't rule out a possible work stoppage. She hoped that the 2 events would have made “important progress” by All-Star weekend, which is scheduled for July 18-19.
However the course of up thus far has been “a little bit bit sluggish,” Stewart mentioned.
“From the gamers' perspective, it's laborious to have the ability to navigate this throughout the center of the season, but additionally we all know how vital it's and actually getting it performed earlier than the top of October and we're making that effort to have the ability to do each,” Stewart mentioned. “The truth that it's been a little bit bit sluggish to begin is hard, however hopeful issues will ramp up now after getting their proposal again. We've a giant assembly in Indy at All-Star and it's gonna be spicy.”
