Although the WNBA’s labor negotiations remain stalled, NBA Commissioner Adam Silver said he is “not ready to set a deadline.”
During his NBA All-Star availability on Saturday, Silver said he hasn’t been at the negotiating table, but remains involved behind the scenes. Although he was unwilling to identify a date that would allow the WNBA to avoid missing games, Silver said there was a need for greater urgency in the negotiation process.
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The league is scheduled to conduct an expansion draft for two new franchises, the Portland Fire and the Toronto Tempo. The WNBA draft is scheduled for April 13 and training camp will likely begin on April 19, giving the WNBA about two months to complete all of its offseason activities.
“What I’d like to accomplish is kind of put pressure on everyone and say, okay, you know, I’ve been through so many rounds of collective bargaining, and a lot of times things tend to get done at the last minute,” Silver said. “We are getting agonizingly close to the eleventh hour when it comes to negotiations.
“We now need to move to a higher level of urgency and not lose momentum in terms of the incredible progress we have seen in women’s basketball.”
WNBA players and the league held their last in-person meeting on February 2, and the league submitted its final CBA proposal this Friday. Revenue sharing remained the main battleground, with the union proposing a split of gross revenues and the league proposing to eliminate expenses before sharing revenue with players.
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The league’s latest proposal does not fundamentally change the revenue sharing structure, although the WNBA now proposes a salary cap of $5.65 million, up from $5.55 million. The league is also committing to minimum facility standards, although owners would prefer to phase them in after 2026.
The league’s biggest concession concerns housing. An earlier league proposal eliminated team housing on the assumption that salaries would rise enough for players to bear the expense, according to sources familiar with the negotiations. However, the WNBA is reintroducing housing for players on minimum salary or with no years of service through the 2028 season. The league also offers studios for players in development. There would be a maximum of two per team.
WNBPA Vice President Breanna Stewart expressed some optimism on her “Game Recognize Game” podcast regarding the latest CBA negotiations updates.
“There’s movement, there’s traction, we’re finally heading in a direction, so I’m excited,” Stewart said. “I’m excited to hopefully negotiate back, to really lead the negotiations because unfortunately it’s been about 17 to 18 months since we’ve negotiated, we’re just fighting.”
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Silver echoed this positive sentiment on Saturday. “I’m encouraged that there’s been more back and forth over the last few weeks,” he said. “There has been more direct engagement from players and team owners.”
WNBA players traditionally participate in NBA All-Star festivities, including participating in the Celebrity Game. The Shooting Stars competition, which returned to All-Star Saturday for the first time since 2015, was initially designed to include one WNBA player on each team of three. However, even as the WNBA lingers in the “status quo” period where the terms of the 2020 CBA come into effect, none of its players were listed on the 2026 NBA All-Star schedule.
This article was originally published in Athletics.
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