rewrite this content and keep HTML tags (remove this from content : rewrite this content and keep HTML tags)
Becky Hammon’s involvement with the WNBA goes way back to before she was a three-time championship-winning head coach with the Las Vegas Aces. Hammon’s history in the league dates back to her 16 years as a star player with the New York Liberty and San Antonio Silver Stars, which provides her with multiple perspectives when it comes to the W’s ongoing CBA (collective bargaining agreement) negotiations.
Hammon made an appearance on CNBC Sport on Wednesday to share some of the insight she gained as a player and a coach, but what she had to say doesn’t bode well for WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert.
“They’re probably going to look for a change in leadership,” Hammon said. “I just think [the relationship between Engelbert and the WNBA players] might be too fractured at this point, but we’ll see.”
Hammon hasn’t been shy to speak out against WNBA leadership before, and she doubled down on her support of the players as the WNBPA fights for what they believe is equitable treatment from the league. The 48-year-old even name-dropped Napheesa Collier after the Minnesota Lynx star called out Engelbert in her scathing exit interview back in September.
“I completely agree with Napheesa that the players should be making more than coaches,” Hammon said. “There’s no doubt about that. The CBA, hopefully, will bump up their salaries substantially. They deserve it. They’re due for a huge increase in salary, and it’s got to be, you know, something that is sustainable.”
Aces’ Becky Hammon says WNBA may need ‘change in leadership’ as CBA negotiation continue https://t.co/uIhljc5Bjv
— USA TODAY Sports (@usatodaysports) November 14, 2025
Hammon admitted she’s personally only had brief interactions with Engelbert, but she pointed to the commissioner’s actions specifically when outlining the problem and why the two sides can’t get closer to a deal.
“[Engelbert’s] private conversations that she’s had with individual players – or lack of the conversations – have led to some, you know, rocky relationship status with the players,” Hammon added. “The one thing that I think the W has always stood on is when the players speak, people need to sit up and listen. And I think she’s sitting up and listening now.”
However, Hammon believes Engelbert’s attention to the issues and willingness to take them seriously have come too late. “I hope she would’ve done it earlier. I don’t know if she can ever kind of retract and get that traction back from those conversations.”
Even though she’s uncertain about whether the talks will result in an agreement by the November 30 extension deadline, Hammon is remaining optimistic that the disagreements won’t result in the WNBA’s first-ever work stoppage.
“I hope they do reach a deal so that there’s no lockout,” Hammon said. “I think right now, we’re on such a high wave. I wouldn’t want there to be a break in the W.”
Hammon emphasized her point about how a lockout would be the worst-case scenario for every side involved since it would bring the WNBA’s escalating momentum to a screeching halt. The W holds so much potential that neither the players nor the leadership wants to squander, and since the league is usually in the habit of prioritizing progress, Hammon is hoping that continues to be the case.
“We’re still growing, but we’re trending in the right direction, and so the numbers got to follow salary-wise,” she said.
“You got to get a reasonable conclusion where both sides are happy, so I hope they can do that.”
