If we still believe in normalcy, we are about 10-12 weeks away from the WNBA Draft. But somehow, we still don’t know if we’ll get to see Paige Bueckers and Caitlin Clark next season because the CBA talks aren’t really progressing. At this point last year, fans were arguing about draft picks, not wondering if the league was even going to know. Despite all the uncertainty, the league announced the schedule for the 2026 season, which made things difficult.
The WNBA wants everyone to believe the season will start on May 8, but it’s not as simple as it seems. Rachel DeMita broke down what appears to be a dual problem.
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“The Indiana Fever will play their first preseason game against the New York Liberty on April 25, then they will play another preseason game on April 30 against the Dallas Wings in Indiana,” DeMita said on Club at the edge of the field. “The WNBA has definitely gone from the Caitlin Clark-Angel Reese rivalry to now the Caitlin Clark-Paige Bueckers rivalry. It seems like they’re trying to pit these two against each other as much as possible.”
To make the league more attractive, the WNBA seems to have changed its strategy. The Clark vs. Reese rivalry was the main draw of the league for two seasons, and it generated huge numbers. Their June 2024 match was a draw 2.25 million viewers on CBSand last season’s opener soared to 2.7 million on ESPN.
Yet the league decided to go in a different direction. The Fever vs Sky matchups are reduced to three meetings, down from four and five in the last two seasons, respectively. However, last season was just one resounding victory after another in favor of Clark, softening the tug-of-war with Reese.
The upcoming preseason schedule makes it even clearer. The Wings are playing the Fever, which means we’re guaranteed at least four Clark vs. Bueckers matchups this season. But even if both players stay fit, these matches don’t guarantee good numbers. The Wings are coming off a disastrous campaign and Bueckers was their only bright spot. There is no room for the team to be considered an underdog, especially when the Golden State Valkyries had such a good year.
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Aren’t we going a little too fast here?
INDIANAPOLIS, IN – JULY 13: Indiana Fever guard Caitlin Clark 22 drives to the basket against Dallas Wings guard Paige Bueckers 5 on July 13, 2025, at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, Indiana. Photo by Brian Spurlock/Icon Sportswire WNBA, Damen Basketball, USA JUL 13 Dallas Wings at Indiana Fever EDITORIAL USE ONLY Icon250713180
“Now these preseason games are in April, the season starts the first week of May, but there’s also training camp that has to start before all of that,” DeMita explained. “They’re going to be back in training camp at least a few weeks before this game. So, as you can see, it’s all getting very murky and it’s messing up a lot of different things.”
Time is clearly running out for the league and players to reach an agreement. According to Annie Costabile’s latest update, general managers are still unsure what the rules of the expansion project will be. More than half the league will be in free agency. No one really knows what this regular draft will look like either.
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We still don’t know how many players each team will be allowed to protect before the expansion draft. What are teams supposed to protect if three-quarters of their roster is in free agency?
There are so many things the WNBA needs to fix, but time is clearly running out. And so far, the league has not agreed to the players’ current demands.
What do Caitlin Clark and the WNBPA want?
The two sides remain miles apart. The latest proposal will give players around 70% of net revenue, rising from 65% to 80% over the full term. Yet none of this is guaranteed. The league’s net revenue system does not guarantee owners a profit, meaning teams could be forced to absorb losses if revenues decline or expenses increase beyond their control, according to Sportico.
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The players want a deal that gives them 30% of gross revenue. It is much simpler to manage than the current WNBA model, although it is not as complex as those in other leagues. In this model, the remaining 70% would remain in the league to cover expenses and operations, without deducting costs up front.
But the league has not yet made it known and time is running out.
The players already have expressed their frustration with the publication of the calendar. Azura Stevens dropped a series of question marks under an Instagram post about the WNBA schedule, and A’ja Wilson posted a film clip of a guy banging a table with the caption “Me watching the schedule post.”
If things don’t improve from here on out, it’s hard to imagine a future in which they avoid a lockout. However, even if the season happens, there is no realistic scenario in which everything would be finalized in time for a soft start on May 8, as the league wants.
The position WNBA’s Troubling Reality Emerges as Caitlin Clark, Fever Add Paige Bueckers to Preseason Plans appeared first on EssentiallySport.
