The WNBA needs internal expansion – Marquette Wire

Photo courtesy of John Mac – 240503 Lynx_SKy preseason_JohnMc031, CC BY-SA 2.0

The next class of professionals entering the WNBA have been selected, but less than half of them will secure a place in the league. 

In 2024, 36 players were drafted to the league but only 13 made it onto an official roster. 2023 saw 15 draftees secure a roster spot, and 2022 had 17. The 2025 draft welcomed 38 new players to the league, however, with training camp rosters finalized last Friday, the number is bound to shrink by the start of the season on May 16. 

Roster expansion hasn’t been able to occur yet because of the salary cap, which will amount to $1.5 million for the 2025 season. For reference, the NBA’s salary cap is $154.6 million, meaning each team can pay their players up to a total of this amount. 

A collective bargaining agreement is still in progress after the WNBPA opted out of the last one, which was set to last until 2027. The new CBA, required to be completed before the start of the 2026 season, will hopefully discuss an increase in salary capping. 

As the league expands, more roster spots are opening, having gone from 144 to 156 with the addition of the Golden State Valkyries, and will amount to 180 in 2026 when the Portland and Toronto franchises start their play. Despite this, there’s still tension when it comes to roster finalization. 

Certain draftees, such as number one pick Paige Bueckers, USC star Kiki Iriafen and French international player Dominique Malonga, are pretty much guaranteed to end up on a roster. Unfortunately, several other first, second and third round picks won’t be granted a spot because of space and salary limitations.

Most franchises currently carry the minimum 11 players because of the salary cap, but the maximum is 12. The NBA has 15 roster spots with three spaces dedicated to players with two-way contracts, which makes sense for the size of the league; the expansion of the WNBA without internal expansion is only going to increase tensions when it comes to the draft. 

This year, the game schedule has been increased to include 44 games per team, making the upcoming season the longest in league history. These increases have been made to accommodate the addition of the Valkyries, but with no plans to add more roster space, load management on an individual basis can become more cluttered and difficult to handle, which impedes on the prioritization of athlete health and injury prevention. 

Because of the salary cap, the Phoenix Mercury only had 11 signed players in the 2024 season, which led to difficulties in the 2024 regular season after five players were ruled out of a game due to injury. Seven players remained available for the game, however, Brittney Griner sustained an injury early on and Rebecca Allen was on a minute restriction due to a back injury.

With no G League crutch like the NBA, there aren’t many backup choices for newly drafted athletes. Not making a roster doesn’t mean the end of a career for an athlete – they can still go overseas and have a chance to get signed to the league at a later time – however, the reliability of these options isn’t sustainable in the long term. 

Unrivaled, a new league created by the WNBA’s Napheesa Collier and Breanna Stewart, helps to open options, providing a chance for pro athletes to play in a league from January to March and earn money that they would otherwise earn overseas. 

With a league growing as quickly as the WNBA, internal growth has to closely follow to ensure proper management of athletes. As the new CBA is created, both the WNBA and WNBPA should prioritize roster expansion to create the most prosperous environment possible for their athletes. 

This story was written by Lilly Peacock. She can be reached at [email protected] or @lillypeacockMU on Twitter/X.