WNBA fans have been worried about the possibility of a lost season as the players and the league struggled to find common ground over many months, but yesterday morning, a new collective bargaining agreement was finally agreed upon.
Advertisement
It’s a landmark deal for the players, and a much better representation of their value as women’s basketball has exploded in popularity. According to ESPN’s Shams Charania, the salary cap has risen from $1.5 million to $7 million, the average salary will rise to about $600,000 while the minimum is now about $300,000, and the top players will be able to sign supermax deals worth at least $1.4 million per year to start.
The players also secured about 20% in revenue share, meaning as the league continues to grow and prosper, so will they. That’s the part that WNBPA vice president Breanna Stewart is most excited about, and she shared that excitement on an emergency episode of her Game Recognize Game podcast.
“We were fighting for rev share, and we never had rev share before,” she said. “We had more of like a fixed salary in previous CBAs, and even in the last one, the max salary, it got up to like $250,000, which seems like a lot, but when you get into a rev share type of system … that supermax number and all of those other numbers will elevate to a way higher level than we’ve ever been in before.”
This has been a really contentious negotiation since last summer, but the hope always remained that a deal would come through because of how much both sides had to lose. WNBA owners are paying more than ever for their franchise because they see the rising popularity of the sport, while many of the players have become household names in a way they never have before.
The success of the Unrivaled 3-on-3 league proved not only that women’s basketball’s popularity was stronger than ever, but that it could be profitable to the players, as well. Unrivaled players make more than they do in the WNBA for far less work and time commitment, but once this deal is ratified by the union by at least a 51% vote, it will better reflect their value to the WNBA.
Revenue sharing completely changes the game for WNBA players. Whereas many chose to play overseas before to supplement their incomes, now many may not have to do that since they’ll be making so much more at home. It’s a win-win situation for the players and the league, because they’re all working toward a common goal.
“We were always in partnership with the WNBA, but even more so now,” Stewart explained. “We’re in collaboration, we’re basically in lockstep, because as the WNBA grows and succeeds, the share of the players grows and succeeds. Our business is now hand-in-hand, directly tied to one another.”
Stewart said that this deal will give the players “an opportunity to create generational wealth,” but it also ensures that former players will get improved retirement benefits as a way to say thank you for paving the way.
The deal is expected to be ratified soon, which would put the new season less than two months away. Opening Night is scheduled for May 8th, so fans of women’s basketball won’t have to wait long to see their favorites players and teams back in action.
