{"id":458081,"date":"2026-02-06T18:15:07","date_gmt":"2026-02-06T18:15:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/458081\/"},"modified":"2026-02-06T18:15:07","modified_gmt":"2026-02-06T18:15:07","slug":"wnba-cba-drama-isnt-about-rhetoric-its-about-money","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/458081\/","title":{"rendered":"WNBA CBA drama isn\u2019t about rhetoric, it\u2019s about money"},"content":{"rendered":"

On Monday, the WNBA and the players union met for the first time in 2026 in an attempt to reestablish \u201cstatus quo\u201d negotiations over the latest collective bargaining agreement. Though negotiations have been ongoing since October, the meeting concluded without significant progress. According to The Athletic<\/a>, the last official proposal was submitted by the WNBPA back in December and has yet to elicit an official response.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Since negotiations began, players have publicly expressed frustration with the league. During WNBA playoffs in late September, WNBPA Vice President Napheesa Collier called WNBA Commissioner Kathy Engelbert\u2019s leadership<\/a> the \u201cworst in the world.\u201d At an Unrivaled press conference this past Friday, New York Liberty guard Natasha Cloud addressed the WNBA directly<\/a>: \u201cWe will not f***ing move until y\u2019all move.\u201d After the league failed to make any moves during Monday\u2019s meeting, Indiana Fever guard Sophie Cunningham called the WNBA the \u201claughingstock of sports<\/a>.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

As negotiations have carried on and players have continued to publicly voice their frustrations, criticism has moved from the league\u2019s inaction to player response. On her Jan. 16 appearance on WNBA legend Sue Bird\u2019s podcast A Touch More, former WNBA star Rebecca Lobo stated she believed the most recent league proposal was a good one and that players\u2019 reactions have been unnecessarily negative<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cSome of the rhetoric I\u2019ve heard from their side has been a little bit troublesome. When a deal is presented that\u2019s over a million max salary and revenue share, it\u2019s called a \u2018slap in the face.\u2019 Like, just use different words. And I\u2019m worried the players might be getting to a point where they might be losing some of the support from the public. And I think that has been a big part of this all along.\u201d<\/p>\n

Tone is the last thing WNBA players should be worried about right now<\/p>\n

Lobo\u2019s comment refers to Satou Sabally\u2019s comments back in July. After being asked what she thought about the league\u2019s decision to add three expansion teams \u2014 one in Cleveland, another in Detroit, and the other in Philadelphia \u2014 Sabally responded that she\u2019d rather focus on the latest CBA proposal and how it could impact current players<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Though rhetoric by players may be blunt, it reflects an economic reality that WNBA players lag behind female athletes in other sports despite substantial market demand. In a recent article, The Athletic<\/a> analyzed Forbes\u2019 2025 world\u2019s highest-paid female athletes<\/a>. They concluded that the most notable outlier was the fourth-highest-paid female athlete, two-time Olympic gold medalist and one-time silver medalist skier Eileen Gu. Of her $23.1 million in earnings, just $0.1 million came from skiing, with the remainder ($23 million) came from endorsements.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The highest-paid basketball player on the list is Caitlin Clark. As the eleventh-highest-paid female athlete in 2025, Clark\u2019s earning breakdown mirrored Gu\u2019s almost exactly: out of her $12.1 million, only $0.1 million came from on-court play, with the remaining $12 million generated off-court. The same applies to Paige Bueckers, who earned $9.1 million in total \u2014 $0.1 million on the court and $9 million from endorsements.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Similar trends hold true for the two other WNBA players on the list. Sabrina Ionescu earned $10.5 million in 2025, with $0.5 million coming from league salary and $10 million from endorsements, while Angel Reese earned $9.4 million total, split between $0.4 million on-court and $9 million off-court. The only other athlete on the list with just $0.1 million in on-field earnings was Ilona Maher, a former Olympic bronze medalist in rugby, who ranked 20th overall with $8.1 million in total earnings.<\/p>\n

When compared to other top earners, the difference in WNBA pay structure is stark. Even the names responsible for boosting fan engagement and ushering in this new age of women\u2019s basketball rely overwhelmingly on endorsements for compensation rather than league salaries. Until this changes, the focus of CBA negotiations should not be on players\u2019 tone, or rhetoric, but on how the WNBA\u2019s current pay structure continues to lag behind proven player merit.\u00a0<\/p>\n

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