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On Wednesday night, Breanna Stewart led the Mist to an Unrivaled title and claimed the 2026 Championship MVP. It’s familiar territory for the New York Liberty star forward and two-time WNBA MVP.
Stewart, who co-founded Unrivaled with Minnesota Lynx All-Star forward Napheesa Collier, will add this championship to her crowded trophy case: two high school state championships, four NCAA championships with UConn, three WNBA championships (two with Seattle, one with New York), three World Cup gold medals, and three Olympic gold medals. Oh, and two EuroLeague championships, too.
As you can see, Stewart has plenty to celebrate.
But she isn’t in an entirely celebratory mood as volatile collective bargaining agreement negotiations between the WNBPA and WNBA continue to drag on. The WNBPA opted out of the previous CBA in October 2024. Last month, according to ESPN’s Alexa Philippou, the league informed the WNBPA that a new CBA needed to be agreed upon by March 10 “for the 2026 schedule not to be impacted.”
Stewart, one of the WNBPA’s vice presidents, isn’t flinching.
“A strike is definitely on the table because we’re negotiating for the best deal possible,” Stewart said on ESPN’s NBA Today. “As everybody knows, we have the strike authorization vote ready. So, that leverage isn’t going away. Do we want to do it? No, we don’t. But, if we have to, we will.”
Earlier this week, a three-page letter written by Stewart and Los Angeles Sparks All-Star guard Kelsey Plum, the First Vice President of the WNBPA, was obtained by ESPN’s Alexa Philippou and Don Van Natta Jr. The letter was sent privately to WNBPA executive director Terri Carmichael Jackson and expressed “serious concerns about how the PA is handling the current negotiations,” per Philippou and Van Natta Jr., “including the lack of adequate player involvement in the process.”
On Wednesday, the WNBPA executive committee released a statement that read, in part:
“Our Union’s nearly unanimous vote in December to authorize us to call a strike, if and when necessary, was not taken lightly. It was made with complete faith and trust in ourselves and our negotiating committee, led by Executive Director Terri Carmichael Jackson and President Nneka Ogwumike, to represent all players as we work to build a W that truly puts players first. Nothing has changed. That decision, and the results of our recent player survey, reaffirm that the current league proposal is not worth taking.”
The WNBPA separately posted the aforementioned survey, which showed that 84% of players would not accept the league’s proposal of an eight-year pact that would give the players 50% of net revenue and less than 15% of gross revenue. Revenue sharing and housing support have been sticking points throughout negotiations.
If the 2026 WNBA season does happen, which will be the league’s 30th season, it is currently scheduled to tip off on May 8. See
