The owners want an agreement by March 10th.
It is crunch time in the negotiations between the Women’s National Basketball Association’s owners and the league’s players. The owners’ negotiators have told WNBPA bargainers, settle by March 10th or face the prospect of losing games on the 2026 schedule. The league planned to open training camps on April 19th, six days after the college draft which is scheduled for April 13th. The regular season is supposed to start on May 8th. The league has not held its expansion draft to stock the Portland and Toronto franchises. The stumbling block is money and how to divide up the revenue that is taken in by the league and distribute it to the players. The two sides have passed two deadlines for an agreement, November 30th, 2025 and January 9th, 2026.
The players don’t want a salary cap while the owners are trying to suppress salaries. The players association may not have a solid front. Meanwhile, a handful of players have committed to play in Project B, a women’s basketball startup league that will begin play in Europe, Asia and Latin America in November and last through April 2027. The Project B women’s basketball league will include six teams with 11 players on each roster, and play a 5-on-5 format. Project B plans to host seven two-week tournaments in locations throughout Europe, Asia and Latin America. Project B will offer players an equity stake in the league and promises to pay more than the WNBA owners are willing to pay for players. Unrivaled, another league is available as well. The three players on three players league is a short season circuit based in South Florida and had some success in attracting crowds in Philadelphia and Brooklyn for its product. But the WNBA is at a crucial junction. Settle now or lose games and money.
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