WNBA: League, union take first step toward new CBA

We’ve got news from three different domestic women’s professional basketball leagues, in addition to a 3×3 national team check in:

CBA conversations have started

On Wednesday evening, the WNBA and WNBPA released a joint statement announcing that the two sides met in person to begin discussing the next collective bargaining agreement (CBA). The meeting, according to the statement, “included preliminary conversations and constructive dialogue,” with both parties citing “a mutual agreement to continue discussions for a transformational, new CBA.”

Attendees representing the players union were WNBPA President and CBA Committee Co-Chair Nneka Ogwumike, WNBPA First Vice President Kelsey Plum, WNBPA Secretary Elizabeth Williams, WNBPA Vice President Napheesa Collier, WNBPA CBA Committee Co-Chair Satou Sabally and Player Representatives DiJonai Carrington and Stef Dolson, along with WNBPA Executive Director Terri Carmichael Jackson and union staff and advisors.

The league was represented by Commissioner Cathy Engelbert, along with the WNBA Labor Relations Committee members and additional league staff and advisors.

Unrivaled is everywhere

We’re less than one month away from the highly-anticipated tip off of the inaugural season of Unrivaled. And the league is everywhere!

Last week, Unrivaled’s new commercial debuted on TNT during the network’s coverage of the NBA Cup.

The professional 3×3 also made appearances at Art Basel, including club captains Breanna Stewart of Mist B.C. and Alyssa Thomas of Laces B.C. speaking at event sponsored by league partner Ally.

Mist B.C.’s Rickea Jackson and Rose B.C.’s Azurá Stevens also showed up courtside at the Women’s Champions Classic, representing Unrivaled as they cheered on their victorious alma maters, Tennessee and UConn.

With an assist from Marina Mabrey, a member of Phantom B.C., Unrivaled announced that UnderArmour will be league’s official uniform partner. Unrivaled’s official ball will be supplied by Wilson.

USA 3×3 on AmeriCup mission

The United States is off defending its 2023 AmeriCup title, with a team of Brittney Sykes, Maddy Siegrist, Azurá Stevens and Abbey Hsu representing the red, white and blue in San Juan, Puerto Rico. The foursome, coached by Sydney Johnson, all participated in the USA Basketball 3×3 National Team development camp in November.

The team is off to a 2-0 start, with wins over the Dominican Republic, 21-14, and Uruguay, 21-4. They continue their quest to maintain the AmeriCup crown on Sunday, with a matchup against Chile at 1:55 p.m. ET, which will be streamed on the FIBA3x3 YouTube channel.

Indy adds player development coach

As she returns to the Indiana sidelines, new Fever head coach Stephanie White is brining another one of her former Connecticut Sun assistant coaches with her. Keith Porter, the Sun’s player development coach in 2023 and 2024, will serve the same role in Indiana. He is credited with facilitating the improvement of Connecticut stars Alyssa Thomas, DeWanna Bonner, Brionna Jones and DiJonai Carrington. Assistant coach Austin Kelly already followed White from Uncasville to Indianapolis.

Aces again bolster coaching staff

Having already hired Ty Ellis as an assistant coach after former assistants Natalie Nakase and Tyler Marsh accepted head jobs in Golden State and Chicago, respectively, the Las Vegas Aces are bringing Larry Lewis onto head coach Becky Hammon’s staff.

For the past five years, Lewis has served as an assistant coach at UC-Santa Barbara. Prior to that, he worked as an assistant and player development coach in the NBA and NBA G-League.

On joining the Aces, Lewis said:

It’s exciting to be joining the Aces because there’s a passion behind the team that is cultural, and it seems to be a very definite ambition of the team to hold onto that culture. That’s always been very intriguing to me, because I know how difficult that is to hold together as a group. That’s a beautiful part of the team. Being a basketball player, playing professionally and having coached on different levels, I know to get a team together to share in a high standard of culture is not the easiest thing to do. That’s what the Aces have here, and it should be valued, it should be cherished, and it should be held together.

AU increases UConn vibes ahead of 2025 season

Ahead of Athletes Unlimited’s Nashville-based 2025 season, there has been an emphasis on the native Tennesseans who will be participating. Well, representatives from one of the historic rivals of Tennessee’s flagship school also will be invading the AU court. In other words, some former UConn Huskies are suiting up for the league’s fourth season.

Having suffered a series of unlucky injuries, Christyn Williams will look to kickstart her pro career with AU, while Evina Westbrook, who began her college career at Tennessee before transferring to UConn, will again participate in AU, having previously competed in 2023.

Other recently-announced AU participants are:

Sequoia Holmes, an international journeywoman returning for her fourth AU season
Asia Taylor, who has a decade of pro experience in the WNBA and overseas
Ashley Joens, the former Iowa State standout who has played in New Zealand and Italy
Jude Schimmel, who helped the Louisville reach the 2013 national championship game
Angel Jackson, the 2023 and 2024 SWAC Defensive Player of the Year at Jackson State