League, WNBPA still far from new CBA deal days before deadline

The extended CBA negotiation deadline that the WNBA and WNBPA agreed upon is quickly approaching, but the two sides are apparently no closer to reaching a deal. According to ESPN, talks are currently stalled largely because of disagreements over a revenue sharing system.

The WNBA is against the players’ association’s proposal to give players a 30% share of gross revenue because it would apparently end up costing the league $700 million in losses over the course of the agreement, based on a previous financial audit. However, the union disagrees with that assessment, calling the figure “absolutely false,” and has calculated that the move would actually leave the league in a “profitable position.”

The discrepancy comes down to whether expansion team fees are factored into the W’s revenue projections, which the WNBPA included. The players’ union factored in the recently announced expansion franchises’ fees of $250 million each into its projections, seeing them as real money that still adds money to owners’ bottom lines. However, the WNBA determined that the move would result in no net revenue since new teams will be out the expansion fee but earn a fractional share of league revenue in the future, while preexisting teams get a portion of the fee but lose a fractional share of future league revenue.

The WNBA’s latest proposal featured a system where players would receive in excess of 50% of the revenue after subtracting expenses, an uncapped revenue sharing component, a raise of maximum salaries above $1.3 million and growing to nearly $2 million while average salaries top $530,000 and grow to more than $780,000 over the life of the deal, minimum salaries starting at more than $250,000 in the first year alone, and a salary cap that would be $5 million in the first year and expand with revenue growth in the following years.

However, the WNBPA referred to some of the league’s suggestions as a “slap in the face.” Then, in mid-December, the players’ union announced that the WNBA’s players were 98% in favor of authorizing a strike if necessary after 93% of the league voted on the issue. The two sides have until January 9 to reach a deal.