The WNBA season may be over, but the upcoming few days will have the attention of the basketball world. After all, October 31st is the deadline to finalize a CBA deal, which is its own issue given the tension between the players and the WNBA commissioner, Cathy Engelbert. Amid these negotiations and the push for higher pay, Charles Barkley recently warned players by saying, “They’re walking on thin ice right now… just because you’ve got power and talent doesn’t mean these billionaire owners are going to give you everything you want.” However, the owners won’t mind locking down a deal quickly. After all, as Sue Bird highlighted on a recent podcast, they will need to take advantage of an unusual opportunity.

The WNBA legend came on as a guest on Monday’s episode of ‘The Young Man and the Three’ podcast. During the same time, Sue Bird was asked about what one would look at when building a team in the WNBA. The former player replied that it depends, since this off-season isn’t like the others. As Bird highlighted, except for 2 veterans (Kalani Brown and Lexie Brown), and a couple of players still on rookie/draft contracts, all of the other WNBA players will become free agents! Additionally, 2 more WNBA teams are set to be added to the league for the coming season. Each star player is available to be approached, and it will be like a fight at the Cornucopia.

“So, it’s like the answer to your question is kind of like complex, because it’s…. I don’t think this is a free agency where you go for like the fit for your team or the role player. This isn’t what this is. This is, I think, as a GM, this is how can I prey on teams that have multiple All-Stars, and try to financially lure one, you know, if it’s not the tippy top, you know, player, the best player on the team, the second one, the third one, the fourth one even, and try to financially lure them because the way the money, you know, assuming the influx is what it is, teams are going to have money to spend” said Sue Bird.

Sue Bird further added that “Obviously, the CBA has to get done and all the things, but if we live in a world right now where it’s done, I’d imagine that, you know, you could be looking at a scenario where your best player is getting, let’s call it a million. I’m making this up. Your best player is getting a million. Now, you get to offer that second player a million to come to your team. And now it’s like, uh, that player is going to have a huge decision. So, I’d be playing around with that.”

As reports reveal, the league’s maximum salary is around $250,000. It went up a fixed amount annually, as stipulated in the CBA. The current pay is a large increase from the $119,000 max of the last CBA, but not satisfactory to the players. On the other hand, the NBA has a salary cap of $154.647 million set for the 2025-26 season. Sure, the WNBA has been incurring a loss since its inception, and it does not come close to matching the revenue the WNBA brings in. However, thanks to the new media rights deal and the ‘Caitlin Clark’ effect, things should ideally look bright for the league.

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Players won’t be enticed to join another team just by higher pay. After all, they want revenue sharing as well. Kelsey Plum described it as wanting a piece of the entire pie, not just a part of the pie. This includes pieces of media rights fees, team ticket sales, and jersey revenue. Natasha Cloud recently took it further by saying, “So, it’s not enough to only give us revenue share from the league standpoint. We’re asking for revenue share from the team standpoint, too.”

If the players commit to a fixed amount now, things might change in a few years. This certainly leaves a lot for WNBA teams to explore. Decisions that just cannot wait to be made until a CBA deal is finalized. However, as a renowned analyst recently mentioned, there is little time left on the clock.

After Sue Bird, another analyst warns Cathy Engelbert about the CBA standoff

Rachel A. DeMita, just like several WNBA fans out there, has been following the story about the CBA negotiations closely, especially since the point when Napheesa Collier alleged that Cathy Engelbert shut down talks for both a pay raise and complaints about the officiating. When discussing the key WNBA offseason dates on a recent episode of her show ‘Courtside Club’, she noted that “November and December are the expansion draft and the draft lottery… they’re a thousand percent not getting it done by then.” Last year’s lottery was held on November 17. With no updates yet on how the negotiations are proceeding, the uncertainty is making everyone anxious.

“If I were to guess, I would think that they would need to get the CBA finished before January, just so they can have as much of a runway as they need to do the expansion draft to do the draft lottery, and then to get free agency moving. Because when you start stacking these things, if they’re not able to get these things finished before April, which is when WNBA preseason and training camp start, then that’s where it starts to get really, really sticky,” said DeMita.

A delay in the draft lottery can affect the franchise’s squad-building plans, which, in turn, can affect the hype around the 2026 draft. If that isn’t enough, a delayed draft equals a delayed expansion draft for the Portland Fire and Toronto Tempo, aka the 2 new expansion teams.

One side has too much at stake. However, the other side has too many demands. No wonder the negotiations are happening in silence, as official updates or leaks can only worsen the situation.