Adam Silver Stresses Urgency in WNBA CBA Negotiations

The NBA commissioner gave his view of where the talks stand, acknowledging that the situation is “awfully close” to the 11th hour.

NBA commissioner Adam Silver stressed urgency in the WNBA’s negotiations over a new collective bargaining agreement. | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

NBA commissioner Adam Silver thinks the WNBA’s negotiations on a new collective bargaining agreement need to pick up steam.

During his All-Star weekend press conference on Saturday, Silver addressed the state of negotiations between the WNBA’s players and the league. With a lot left to accomplish, and not much time to do it, the commissioner acknowledged that the talks are “awfully close to the 11th hour.”

“Let me begin by saying I think it’s unfortunate where we find ourselves right now, both from the team standpoint and from the players,” Silver said. “We’re coming off tremendous momentum in the WNBA. It’s not lost on anyone. I feel like in the last few years in particular, the league has turned a corner in terms of fan interest, commercial success, popularity of players. All arrows are pointing up in terms of the WNBA, and as one who was involved from the earliest days, now going into our 30th season, I couldn’t be prouder to be part of that movement.

“I’m not ready to set a drop-dead date [on negotiations]. But I will say, as I look at the calendar and the amount that we need to get done, really over the next two months, because training camps are scheduled to open roughly two months from now. To your point, we have to get not one but two drafts done. We have an expansion draft and a collegiate draft, and then we need to fit in free agency. Plus, whenever we shake hands on a collective bargaining agreement, the lawyers have to go to work and memorialize it.

“What I’d love to accomplish is sort of putting pressure on everybody and saying, okay, I’ve been through so many cycles of collective bargaining, and often things tend to get done at the 11th hour. We are awfully close to the 11th now when it comes to bargaining.”

Silver did add that there has more communication over the past few weeks, and that he remains involved behind the scenes. As Silver referenced, the league having to do an expansion draft for two new franchises, the Portland Fire and Toronto Tempo, adds more urgency to the situation.

The old collective bargaining agreement was agreed to in 2020 and expired on January 9. In December, the WNBA’s players voted to authorize a strike if necessary, with 98% of the players voting in favor of such a move.

The WNBPA has reportedly proposed receiving 30% of the league’s gross revenue, while the WNBA’s latest offer didn’t exceed 15%.

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