![\"NA\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/XX4N3UET7JHAVFZVFZIJFLHZNM.jpg\")
Protestors favoring the WNBA players alongside an inflatable rat at the NBA Store on Friday — a symbol of union discontent. NBAPA <\/p>\nProtestors favoring the WNBA players alongside an inflatable rat at the NBA Store on Friday — a symbol of union discontent. NBAPA <\/p>\n
The WNBA\u2019s collective bargaining agreement expired Friday night without an extension or deal, meaning a player strike — more likely than a lockout — is a realistic possibility in the coming weeks or months if negotiations over revenue sharing continue to stall.<\/p>\n
With the continued disruption to the regular WNBA calendar, sources said the league submitted a free agent moratorium proposal to the union at 11:06 p.m. Eastern Time, which the WNBPA was still examining well after midnight and will not greenlight right away. <\/p>\n
If accepted, it would presumably allow the roughly 100 WNBA free agent players to negotiate tentative contracts that wouldn\u2019t become ironclad until a CBA was formalized. <\/p>\n
After a day of union protests outside the NBA Store in Manhattan — which included an inflatable rat to signify the dissent players feel after 15 months of failed talks — the WNBPA issued a contentious 11th hour statement Friday implying the WNBA has purposely delayed progress and devalued the players\u2019 role in recent league fiscal success.<\/p>\n
\u201cDespite demonstrating our willingness to compromise in order to get a deal done, the WNBA and its teams have failed to meet us at the table with the same spirit and seriousness,\u201d the WNBPA said in its statement. \u201cInstead, they have remained committed to undervaluing player contributions, dismissing player concerns, and running out the clock.<\/p>\n
\u201c\u2026This misguided approach will not work. In the face of the league and teams\u2019 actions, the players remain undeterred, unafraid, and unwavering in their commitment to doing what is necessary to secure a transformational new CBA.”<\/p>\n
The \u201crunning out the clock\u201d comment is a reference to a union request over two weeks ago for 30% of league and team revenue and a $10M-plus salary cap. As of Friday\u2019s deadline, sources said the WNBA still hadn\u2019t responded, largely because the league believes if it accepted the union\u2019s 30% proposal, it would lose $700M over the length of the CBA. The union has argued the league would lose less if it counted expansion fees–so their disagreements are incessant.<\/p>\n
![\"NA\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/3K3JZHHQPJFSHPVKUOSPX2A4JQ.jpg\")
A pro-WNBPA sign outside the NBA Store on Friday. WNBPA <\/p>\n
At 12:30 a.m. Saturday, the WNBA league office issued its own statement–far less acrimonious and acknowledging a desire not to negate the league\u2019s recent gains.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe current Collective Bargaining Agreement has expired, and negotiations with the Women\u2019s National Basketball Players Association remain ongoing,\u201d the WNBA statement said. \u201cAs the league experiences a pivotal time of unprecedented popularity and growth, we recognize the importance of building upon that momentum. Our priority is a deal that significantly increases player salaries, enhances the overall player experience, and supports the long-term growth of the league for current and future generations of players and fans.\u201d <\/p>\n
Either way, the expiration of the CBA moves the league and union into a \u201cstatus quo\u201d phase in which they can continue negotiations. Sources said both sides intend to do so in good faith, but the caveat is that — without a CBA — the league can lock the players out or the players can go on strike.<\/p>\n
Sources familiar with the WNBA have emphatically said there are no plans for a lockout, with insiders believing that NBA Commissioner Adam Silver — who oversees WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert — does not want to take a hardline approach at this time. But 93% of the W players were asked last month if they would authorize their union to strike if they saw fit, and 98% voted yes. <\/p>\n
Whether they act on it is uncertain. But any disruption has ramifications. There is still an expansion draft to stage for two fledgling teams — the Toronto Tempo and Portland Fire — not to mention the free agency period that the moratorium proposal is meant to salvage. <\/p>\n
On a podcast Friday, WNBPA legal counsel and senior advisor Erin Drake told reporter Khristina Williams that Engelbert has stated there will not be an expansion draft until a new CBA is ratified, and Breanna Stewart of the Liberty implied to podcaster Sarah Spain that everything could be copacetic if a deal is finalized by Feb. 1.<\/p>\n
But, if not, the pressure of a strike or lockout could intensify.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe biggest change of entering this period of status quo is that neither side is prevented from initiating a work stoppage,\u201d Drake said on the podcast. \u201cAnd that\u2019s a pretty big deal. That\u2019s a big deal in any labor negotiation and certainly in any contract, and that\u2019s where we could be in eight hours.\u201d<\/p>\n
The union\u2019s CBA concerns, other than the revenue pie, is improved facilities leaguewide and health benefits for the retired players who they believe were the grassroots of the league. <\/p>\n
In response, sources said the WNBA contends they have made major concessions to the union, particularly in terms of salary structure. They have eliminated their hard cap and agreed to a structure that league sources said would give the players 70% of net revenue (which the union believes is only 15% of gross revenue). The league has also raised the 2026 max salary to more than $1.3M (compared to $250,000 in 2025) and to almost $2M annually in ensuing years. They\u2019ve similarly escalated average salaries to over $530,000 in 2026 (compared to $102,249 in 2025), later reaching $780,000.<\/p>\n
The players, however, don\u2019t seem entirely interested in hard numbers and simply want their salaries to grow as league and team business grows — through a ramped-up revenue share. That\u2019s essentially the impasse.<\/p>\n
\u201cToday\u2019s display of an inflatable rat, a universal symbol of labor protest, outside of the NBA Store, calls attention to how the league and its teams have handled these negotiations,\u201d the union statement said Friday night at the deadline. \u201cBy delaying and clinging to the status quo, they are jeopardizing the livelihoods of players and the trust and investment of fans, all in the name of preserving regressive provisions that no longer belong in women\u2019s basketball. <\/p>\n
\u201cPlayers care deeply about their fans and take pride in honoring that loyalty every time they take the court. The league\u2019s tactics harm current and future players and marginalize the very people who show up for the game in communities across the country\u2026This agreement must include a salary system tied to a meaningful share of the revenue that would not exist without player labor, mandate professional working conditions, and require protections that honor the players who built this league and set the next generation up for success. Make no mistake. Pay equity is not optional and progress is long overdue. We urge the league and its teams to meet this moment. The players already have and will continue to do so.\u201d <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Protestors favoring the WNBA players alongside an inflatable rat at the NBA Store on Friday — a symbol…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":69445,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[629],"tags":[49,48,82,630,56438],"class_list":{"0":"post-401518","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-wnba","8":"tag-ca","9":"tag-canada","10":"tag-sports","11":"tag-wnba","12":"tag-wnbpa"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/401518","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=401518"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/401518\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/69445"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=401518"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=401518"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=401518"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}