The WNBA has been without a CBA since October 2025. Since then, the league and Players’ Association has gone back and forth on particulars of the new agreement. We’re drawing closer to the start of the season on May 8, but we’re no closer to an agreement. Time is running out, and everyone knows it. For Breanna Stewart, time is of the essence.
Breanna Stewart is an Executive Vice President in the WNBPA. Stewie is in the room negotiating on the CBA, and she’s been sharing updates along the way. She’s called out the lack of urgency from the league and called on the NBA to become directly involved.
The sides have exchanged proposals more frequently as of late and made concessions. However, there are a lot of areas that still need to be addressed. In a moment like this, more conversations would help the process along.
“I’m hoping that we’ll be able to get into an actual negotiation period, where we’ll go back and forth about numbers and benefits and stuff like that,” Stewart told Madeline Kenney of the New York Post. “It’s been exhausting, like, physically and mentally, but we want to make sure that we get the best possible CBA out of this. And we negotiate as well as we can but we all know that time is not on our side anymore, and I think that needs to be something that’s mutually seen in the entire room.”
The lack of urgency from the WNBA has been evident over the past year and change. In July, The Local W asked her about the league’s level of communication with the players:
The WNBA is rising. The league is on fire and ready to reach bigger audiences. The product is great and the players are household names. 2026 represents another chance for the W to grow. However, they have to play in order to make that dream a reality.
May 8 is a long way away, but not that long. The lack of agreement runs the risk of making things harder on players and fans alike the deeper this goes. The league needs to move with urgency so business can resume and everyone can properly get ready for a historic season. Time is of the essence.