SAN FRANCISCO — As questions surrounding WNBA collective bargaining and whether the 2026 season will start on time step up, Hall of Famer Cheryl Miller offered an optimistic take on the labor strife that has recently engulfed the women’s game. Speaking before Monday’s NBA game between the LA Clippers and Golden State Warriors game as part of an all-female show hosted by the Warriors to celebrate Women’s Empowerment MonthMiller expressed hope regarding ongoing collective negotiations.
“Our game has evolved,” Miller said. “We have the same issues and problems as men, and that’s a good thing.”
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Miller, who is widely considered one of the greatest players of all time, coached the WNBA’s Phoenix Mercury from 1997 to 2000 and was an ambassador for the game for most of her life. The league and its players continue to deal with the surge in popularity generated by Indiana Fever star Caitlin Clark and several others, as well as the way WNBA players have populated the 3-on-3 Unrivaled league, as they work toward a deal before the season begins in May.
Miller appeared on the NBC Sports Bay Area telecast alongside Golden State Valkyries coach Natalie Nakase and athletics announcer Jenny Cavnar, using the opportunity to advocate for more WNBA coaches to join the NBA.
“I will wait until we go on the air to say what I really want to say about more women coaching at the professional level and also in the NBA,” Miller said. “I know (Nakase) wants to stay as Valkyrie head coach, but we have a lot of women in the WNBA who should coach in the NBA.”
Las Vegas Aces coach Becky Hammon was on Gregg Popovich’s staff with the San Antonio Spurs from 2014-2021 and won three WNBA championships as a coach during her own Hall of Fame career. Nakase said it would be “surreal” to broadcast a game involving Clippers coach Ty Lue, who served as a mentor to him in his career.
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“It’s obviously come full circle,” Nakase said before Tuesday’s match. “Just mentorship, friendship that I’ve developed. And obviously I’m learning again, because I get to see him in action, so it’ll be fun…I owe him a lot and that’s one of the main reasons why I’m wearing this hat today.”
As negotiations unfold, the WNBA has many fans in the Warriors’ locker rooms and offices who have a vested interest in the season starting on time. Besides Nakase’s friendship with Lue and Warriors coach Steve Kerr, former Warriors assistant Chris DeMarco recently left to take over as coach of the New York Liberty. Warriors goalkeeper Brandin Podziemski is a noted Valkyries fan and supporter of women’s soccer. He said he hasn’t followed the negotiations in depth, but he hopes the season can start without any problems.
“I’m obviously aware of some of their activities,” Podziemski said. “But as a fan, I really want to see something done so we can have a season to see and watch. But you understand it as a player from their perspective, they want what they want and they feel what they deserve and you kind of see it from both perspectives.”
This article was originally published in Athletics.
Golden State Warriors, Los Angeles Clippers, WNBA
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