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Although it was NBA All-Star weekend, Adam Silver couldn’t escape questions about the WNBA CBA negotiations. He said that something he “would love to do is put pressure on everyone” and “we need to now move toward the next level of sense of urgency.” Nneka Ogwumike wasn’t very fond of those comments.
When she appeared on Flagrant and Funny w/ Cari Champion & Jemele Hill, Ogwumike said, “I actually was a little bit confused when Adam [Silver] said that because as players we have certainly had a sense of urgency so much so that we’ve moved a substantial amount on this portion of the agreement that we know is going to allow everything else to fall in place.”
That portion is the revenue shares. The league, on the other hand, hasn’t operated with the same sense of urgency, according to Ogwumike. She outlined how the players initially asked for 40% of the revenue but lowered that number significantly while the league moved little.
“Over time, we’ve come down, and we’ve come down to degrees that are not equivalent or equitable to how the league has been proposing,” Ogwumike said. “So, when we gave our proposal in December, we had come down to somewhere closer to 28%, and that was where we had not heard a response for about six weeks until, I believe, this last Friday. And, quite frankly, the league’s first proposal had the player share at less than 13, and they’re still stuck at 14.5. It’s not even at 15. So, to come back six weeks later, and that’s still where they’re at doesn’t demonstrate a sense of urgency from them.”
A strike is still on the table
The players still have the option to strike, which would be a first in league history, but Ogwumike reiterated that players want to play the 2026 season. It’s in everybody’s best interest. Having a 2026 season is the best way to build on the momentum the league has gained over the last few seasons, and for players to continue to build their brands. While there are many other options for players now, the WNBA is the most established league, and that carries weight with brands that want to pay players.
At the same time, however, the players don’t want to back down on what they feel they deserve because that would mean failing generations of players who dealt with terrible playing conditions to get the league to where it is and future generations still waiting for their chance to help grow the game.
A recent in-person meeting in New York at least prompted the league to finally respond to the WNBPA’s proposal from December. Ogwumike also said that the players would send their response to the league’s latest proposal soon. So, at least there is some movement in the negotiations. But time is ticking. The season is scheduled to start in May, which doesn’t leave much time for the expansion draft, free agency, and the college draft.
