LAS VEGAS — In terms of collective bargaining agreement negotiations, the WNBA and the players’ union are at a crossroads. Napheesa Collier highlighted Tuesday just how far apart the two sides are.
Collier, a WNBPA vice president and co-founder of 3×3 league Unrivaled that competes in the WNBA offseason, made a prepared statement at Lynx exit interviews. She talked about the state of the league as a whole, officiating, player salaries, and comments commissioner Cathy Engelbert has made to her over the course of CBA negotiations.
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“We have the best players in the world. We have the best fans in the world, but right now we have the worst leadership in the world,” Collier said. “If I didn’t know exactly what the job entailed, maybe I wouldn’t feel this way, but unfortunately for them, I do. We serve a league that has shown they think championship coaches and Hall of Fame players are dispensable and that’s fine. It’s professional sports, but I will not stand quietly by and allow different standards to be applied at the league level.”
Collier also said Engelbert told her that Fever star Caitlin Clark should be “grateful” for the WNBA, as Clark would not get any sponsorships without the league’s platform. Via the Fever, Clark did not comment on Collier’s statement. Facts also deny that claim, as Clark had multiple high-profile sponsorship deals while she was at Iowa.
“I have the utmost respect for Napheesa Collier and for all the players in the WNBA,” Engelbert said in a statement following Collier’s comments. “Together we have all worked tirelessly to transform this league. My focus remains on ensuring a bright future for the players and the WNBA, including collaborating on how we continue to elevate the game. I am disheartened by how Napheesa characterized our conversations and league leadership, but even when our perspectives differ, my commitment to the players and to this work will not waver.”
The collective bargaining agreement expires Oct. 31, following the WNBA Finals. No official WNBA business will happen without a new CBA or an extension of the old CBA — that includes an expansion draft for the Portland Fire and Toronto Tempo, which is slated for December, or any form of free agency, which is supposed to start in January 2026. It could even turn into a work stoppage if the two sides cannot agree before the slated beginning of the season in May 2026.
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“It’s a really big time,” Fever guard Lexie Hull, who is Indiana‘s alternate union player rep, said during shootaround Tuesday. “It’s exciting to see players speak out and speak up about what’s going on in our league, and where our league can go and changes that need to be made.
“I know you’re talking about Phee’s interview and I think when it comes down to it, I think I agree with everything she said … We’re the players that are driving this change, and regardless of how it’s said, I think the messaging stands the same from the player’s perspective. Things need to change.”
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Las Vegas Aces player rep Chelsea Gray said Tuesday that the two sides have yet to agree on an issue in the new CBA. The biggest sticking points the players have mentioned are revenue sharing and player salaries — the WNBA gets a fraction of the league’s revenue, the supermax salary tops at $250,000, compared to the NBA.
The players are looking for transformative change in all of those things. And the league isn’t meeting them where they want to be.
“We have a lot of work to do, more so on the W side and with Cathy, and understanding our value as a league, as players, and there’s no league without the players,” Gray said. “We’re not where we should be or we thought we would be when we decided to opt out … It’s not anywhere where we thought it would be. It’s market share, it’s salaries, it’s player safety, it’s everything. I wouldn’t say that we’re where we want to be for maybe one thing.”
Chloe Peterson is the Indiana Fever beat reporter for IndyStar. Reach her at capeterson@gannett.com or follow her on X at @chloepeterson67. Get IndyStar’s Indiana Fever and Caitlin Clark coverage sent directly to your inbox with our Caitlin Clark Fever newsletter. Subscribe to IndyStar’s YouTube channel and join Fever Insiders Live postgame.
This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Lexie Hull, Chelsea Gray support Napheesa Collier statement on WNBA, Engelbert
