The standoff between the WNBA and its players’ union keeps dragging on, and it’s starting to feel all too familiar. Neither side has budged, and the longer the impasse lasts, the more real the concern becomes that it could spill over into the 2026 season. With tensions still unresolved, a prominent WNBA analyst has now weighed in, offering some troubling insight into where these negotiations may be headed.
WNBA Analyst Has Revealed a Worrying Update Regarding the Ongoing CBA Talks
During a recent episode of the “A Touch More” podcast, respected WNBA analyst Rebecca Lobo didn’t hold back. She made it pretty clear that in her view, the WNBPA and the WNBA should have worked this out by now.
“Looks like a pretty amazing deal. It seems like the sides are farther apart than they should be, though, for this point in time. I’m hopeful they’ll come together,” Lobo said.
She went further and suggested something that should make players sit up and take notice. It is that fan support might actually be running out. According to Lobo, the way players have been talking about this situation has actually worked against them rather than helping their cause.
“Some of the rhetoric I’ve heard from their side has been a little bit troublesome. When a deal is presented that’s over a million max salary and revenue share, it’s called a ‘slap in the face.’ Just use different words.
“I’m worried the players might be getting to a point where they’re losing some of the support from the public. And I think that’s been a big part of this all along… I think some of it has just been the language and the verbiage and that sort of thing that we’ve heard from the players’ association,” Lobo added.
These comments come at a time when several WNBA stars have hinted at more serious consequences if talks continue to stall. Breanna Stewart recently acknowledged that while players are not planning an immediate strike, it remains a real option.
So how did things even get here? This whole situation started brewing back in late 2024. The WNBPA decided to opt out of its current agreement. So that move basically kicked off negotiations for a completely new deal that would have taken effect at the end of the 2025 season. The players weren’t shy about what they wanted.
They wanted significantly better pay, a much larger portion of the league’s overall revenue, and improved benefits across the board.
Initially, everyone expected a deal to be done by Oct. 31. That date came and went with nothing to show for it. Then they pushed it to Nov. 30. Again, no dice. After that fell through, both sides agreed to give themselves another six weeks and marked January 9 on their calendars as the new must-hit deadline.
Around last December, some details about what is actually on the table started leaking out. Word got around that player salaries for 2026 might average somewhere north of $500,000. Even the players at the bottom of the roster would have made upwards of $225,000.
The proposals floating around also talked about raising the salary cap to around $5 million for 2026, with the idea that future bumps would be tied to how much money the league actually brings in.
After the Jan. 9 discussions wrapped up, things got pretty quiet on both the league’s and the WNBPA’s end. According to CNBC Sports, the two sides agreed to pause everything through a moratorium. It is basically a temporary freeze on free agency, which would usually already be in full swing under the current rules.
For now, it remains unclear when, or if, the two sides will reach an agreement.
