WNBA commissioner regarding the CBA: ‘We must finalize it by Monday’
WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert emphasized the importance of finalizing a new collective bargaining agreement by Monday to prevent any disruption to significant dates on the calendar. “We must complete it by Monday.” Engelbert informed reporters on Friday that it is essential to complete the task without interfering with the ongoing two-team expansion draft. We need to initiate the expansion process. We need to initiate free agency. We need to prepare for the college draft, which is just a month away from today.
The league and union have been conducting sessions that have lasted for double-digit hours each day since Tuesday. Front Office Sports reported Friday that the parties convened in a Manhattan hotel until nearly 3 a.m. that morning, totaling 16 hours of discussion.
League officials established March 10 as the cutoff date for a new CBA agreement to prevent the cancellation of regular-season games. The 2026 WNBA Draft is set for April 13, with training camps beginning on April 19 and the regular season expected to start on May 8.
The league and the players have remained at an impasse for several months, with revenue sharing, a revised salary cap, and housing being among the primary concerns.
Terri Carmichael Jackson, the executive director of the Women’s National Basketball Players Association, emphasized on Friday that establishing a system “tied to revenue in a meaningful way” continues to be a priority for players and noted that progress has been made during these negotiations. “I believe the league, especially the commissioner and her team, have understood that transformation remains the goal,” Jackson informed reporters on Friday. “As long as progress propels us forward, I believe we are on the right track.”
Nneka Ogwumike serves as the president of the Women’s National Basketball Players Association executive committee, alongside Breanna Stewart, Brianna Turner, Alysha Clark, and Carmichael Jackson, who represent the union. Engelbert, along with Bethany Donaphin, the head of league operations; Clara Wu Tsai, owner of the New York Liberty; and Jennifer Rizzotti, president of the Connecticut Sun, has represented the league.
