All-Star guard Kelsey Mitchell was asked about her future with the Indiana Fever at the team’s exit interviews on Thursday, Oct. 2 in Indianapolis. Her answer was a dire warning.
“I hope we got a league,” Mitchell said. “I hope that when it’s all said and done … we can have a season, period. For all the girls, every person, that has aspirations to be in the league … that’s the start.
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“Having a league is kind of big for us.”
The collective bargaining agreement is set to expire on Oct. 31, and the WNBA and its players are not close to a deal. The players union opted out of the CBA, which was set to expire in 2027, last year. Indiana’s Caitlin Clark was succinct when stating how big October will be for the WNBA. The All-Star guard, who brought many fans to the league after her record-setting career at Iowa, emphasized working together to find a solution.
“We are in the biggest moment in WNBA history. … Everybody that’s in a place of power has a true responsibility,” the All-Star guard said. “We have a responsibility to make sure that this game is in a great place going forward with the CBA, caring for our players and building this league to make sure it’s in a great spot for many years to come.
“We’re in a moment in time where the WNBA has never been hotter, there’s never been more fans.”
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Revenue sharing is the biggest obstacle for both sides in getting to a new agreement. The maximum salary in the league under the current CBA is $215,000 and the average is $130,000. Revenues are climbing with a new $200 million-a-year media deal set to start next season, sold-out arenas and fans buying merchandise. Players want a share of that growth.
Fever guard Sophie Cunningham said the players will get a “much needed” update on CBA talks on a call Thursday afternoon. They are also looking to lock in charter flights, which were never codified in the CBA, and talk about safety, given the number of injuries and concern about officiating.
WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert has a news conference scheduled with reporters Friday night in Las Vegas ahead of Game 1 of the WNBA Finals between the Phoenix Mercury and Las Vegas Aces.
“I promise you: We’re not going to play until they give us what we deserve,” Cunningham said. “And that (a lockout) is where it’s headed, unfortunately, which would be the dumbest basketball decision business-wise ever considering all the momentum the W has now.”
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Fever’s Kelsey Mitchell on next season: ‘I hope we got a league’
