PHILADELPHIA — A potential strike looms, players’ frustrations and concerns are running high and WNBA collective bargaining agreement negotiations are stuck in an impasse. That’s why several star players, along with league and union officials, are scheduled to meet Monday in New York to discuss CBA issues.
WNBPA President Nneka Ogwumike and other key union leaders, including Kelsey Plum and Napheesa Collier, are among the expected players. Other WNBPA executives, the WNBA Labor Relations Committee, some owners and members of the league’s Board of Governors are expected to participate in the high-stakes in-person meeting that some say could be an inflection point in negotiations.
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Whatever happens Monday, eight-year WNBA veteran Azura Stevens said she’s “ready to” strike.
“If the league wants to play and we don’t have a CBA, I have money. I get paid by Unrivaled and I have other income as well,” Stevens said Friday after pregame filming. Unrivaled tour stops in Philadelphia. “So it’s really their loss. That’s why I think it’s just ridiculous that they’ve dragged on for this long.”
The league has yet to respond to a proposal submitted by the union more than 30 days ago. Part of the reason the WNBA hasn’t responded is because the league is waiting for a more “realistic” proposal, according to ESPN.
With the 2026 season set to begin in less than 100 days, some players are upset with the lack of progress.
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“I’m just a little upset, frustrated — all of us,” said veteran guard Natasha Cloud, who didn’t hold back her emotions. “And in a lot of ways, I’m just disgusted with The W and the way they’re handling this and their lack of value, their lack of value to us, their lack of even trying to make a difference with us.”
The union has been preparing for a possible strike since players opted out of the old CBA after the 2024 season.
But uncertainty about the WNBA’s near future has some players worried, including Sug Sutton.
“It’s a level of worry, a level of unknown, and I don’t like being in that position,” said Sutton, who signed a veteran’s minimum contract in 2025. “So I’m just trying to take it day by day. Being at Unrivaled has helped with the mental part with the W and everything that’s going on.”
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The current collective bargaining agreement expired on January 9 after the parties failed to reach an agreement or agree on a third extension.
Natasha Cloud #15 of the Phantom faces Chelsea Gray #12 of the Rose. Getty Images
The WNBA is operating within the status quo, which is why the 2026 calendar was revealed last week. However, a moratorium suspended freedom of action indefinitely.
In the last known proposal, the WNBA offered players a 70 percent share of net revenue, which equates to about 15 percent of league and team gross revenue, and a salary cap of $5 million. But players are looking for about 30 percent of gross revenue as well as a $10.5 million salary cap hit.
The union is also fighting to remove the basic designation and to retain team-funded housing — which the league has proposed eliminating — among other things.
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“There are certain things that, you know, can stress players out, in a sense,” Sutton said. “And that’s why I said there’s so much unknown and uncertainty about what’s happening in the league and in the CBA, but we’re just hoping for the best.”
Cloud sat in a chair against the back wall of the press conference room Friday afternoon. While the other players had dispersed, Cloud continued and his emphatic response to the Post’s CBA question captured the attention of the room.
Sug Sutton #1 of the Rose passes the ball past Aaliyah Edwards #8 of the Lunar Owls. Getty Images
She said the players were adamant about what they are fighting in this new agreement.
“We know what’s on the horizon,” she continued. “There’s a new TV deal that’s coming that they’re not even putting on the table for us. The percentages, if we actually told you the percentages of what they’re giving, that they’re sending us, it would absolutely piss you off.”
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Cloud then looked directly at a local television camera and said, “We’re not moving until you move. … So the pressure is on the WNBA, on Cathy (Engelbert, WNBA commissioner), on Adam (Silver, NBA commissioner), on everyone that’s in this front office. You do your job, negotiate and pay your people, your players, your employees. That’s a big thing for businesses here in our country right now. So, pay the people who keep your shit going.”
Plum remains optimistic that a deal can be reached and the season will not be delayed.
“I don’t necessarily have any expectations for the outcome (of Monday’s meeting),” Plum said. “Just sitting down and understanding the relationship and the conversation is the No. 1 priority because, let’s face it, when we’re playing telephone with people in our own lives, a lot of times things can fall apart, right? So being able to sit down face to face and say, ‘This is how I feel, this is how you feel.’ Let’s see what we can do from here. ” »
