NEW YORK (AP) \u2014 The WNBA and its players\u2019 union agreed to a moratorium for league business Monday.<\/p>\n
The moratorium, which was confirmed by the league, was necessary because the sides failed to reach a deal on a new collective bargaining agreement or an extension of the current one by Friday night\u2019s deadline.<\/p>\n
The sides are continuing to negotiate in good faith on a new CBA and are far apart on salaries and revenue sharing.<\/p>\n
The moratorium will halt the initial stages of free agency in which teams would seek to deliver qualifying offers and franchise tag designations to players.<\/p>\n
Before the moratorium, the WNBA, under U.S. labor law, had a status-quo obligation to allow teams to send out qualifying offers under the expired CBA agreement. Sunday was the first day that teams would have sent out offers to players.<\/p>\n
While the moratorium makes sense for both sides, they are still far apart on key issues.<\/p>\n
The league\u2019s most recent offer last month would guarantee a maximum base salary of $1 million in 2026 that could reach $1.3 million through revenue sharing. That\u2019s up from the current $249,000 and could grow to nearly $2 million over the life of the agreement, a person familiar with the negotiations told the AP earlier this month. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitive nature of the negotiations.<\/p>\n
Under the league\u2019s proposal, players would receive in excess of 70% of net revenue \u2014 though that would be their take of the profits after expenses are paid. Those expenses would include upgraded facilities, charter flights, five-star hotels, medical services, security and arenas.<\/p>\n
The average salary in 2026 would be more than $530,000, up from its current $120,000, and grow to more than $770,000 over the life of the agreement. The minimum salary would grow from its current $67,000 to approximately $250,000 in the first year, the person told the AP.<\/p>\n
The proposal would also financially pay star young players like Caitlin Clark, Angel Reese and Paige Bueckers, who are all still on their rookie contracts, nearly double the league minimum.<\/p>\n
Revenue sharing is one of the major sticking points in the negotiations.<\/p>\n
The union\u2019s counter proposal to the league would give players around 30% of the gross revenue. The player\u2019s percentage would be from money generated before expenses for the first year and teams would have a $10.5 million salary cap to sign players. Under the union\u2019s proposal, the revenue sharing percent would go up slightly each year. <\/p>\n
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