Ahead of the 2025 WNBA All-Star Game, players made their feelings about negotiations with owners on the league’s next collective bargaining agreement crystal clear.
During warm-ups, players wore shirts with “Pay Us What You Owe Us” written across the chest. (h/t ESPN’s Holly Rowe)
Earlier this week, players, commissioner Cathy Engelbert and owner representatives met face-to-face for the first time since December, two months after players opted out of the current CBA, setting it to expire at the conclusion of the 2025 season.
Per ESPN’s Kendra Andrews, over 40 players attended the meetings, making it “the largest in-person player turnout in union history during CBA talks.”
Afterward, the union lamented a “missed opportunity” at the meeting. In a statement, the WNBPA wrote, “The WNBA’s response to our proposals fails to address the priorities we’ve voiced from the day we opted out.”
“The only thing more unsustainable than the current system is pretending it can go on forever,” the statement continued.
“We’re on a time crunch. No one wants a lockout,” said All-Star team captain and MVP favorite Minnesota Lynx forward Napheesa Collier.
The display of solidarity during All-Star Game warm-ups illustrates players’ urgency in getting a deal done.
It also shows a thornier side of negotiations, with players calling out the league on one of its biggest stages.
New York Liberty guard Natasha Cloud spoke about the conflict between the two sides following Thursday’s in-person meeting, saying “We’re not going to be holding hands through the CBA. We’re fighting for what we’re due, what we’re worth, our value.”
“Our job is to find common ground, but that doesn’t mean we keep taking the crumbs of the pie,” Cloud added.
Players know what they want, and they aren’t afraid to say it. The lingering question is how the WNBA will receive the message.
