A third night of negotiating between the WNBA and the players’ union went into the early morning Friday without agreement on a new collective bargaining agreement.
Still, Nneka Ogwumike, the president of the Women’s National Basketball Players Association executive committee, sent a positive message about the negotiations earlier on Thursday.
“I think what we’re feeling is like movement, you know, being able to be in the room, being able to exchange proposals,” Ogwumike said.
Front Office Sports reported Friday that the sides met in a Manhattan hotel until close to 3 a.m., for a total of 16 hours
A previous meeting between the sides ran until 1:30 a.m. on Thursday after the initial session went until 5 a.m. Wednesday. Total negotiation time is approaching 40 hours over three days.
League officials had set March 10 as the deadline for a new CBA agreement to avoid the loss of regular-season games.
The league and the players have been at a standstill for months, with revenue sharing, a revised salary cap and housing among the key issues. The regular season is scheduled to begin May 8.
Front Office Sports reported that the WNBPA is now proposing a $6.2 million salary cap per team, up from $5.75 million earlier in offseason negotiations. Max earnings would reach $1.3 million with average player salary at $570,000, according to numbers that were exchanged during the negotiation session that began on Thursday.
The WNBPA executive committee includes Ogwumike, Breanna Stewart, Brianna Turner and Alysha Clark, as well as executive director Terri Carmichael Jackson. The league has been represented by commissioner Cathy Engelbert, head of league operations Bethany Donaphin, New York Liberty owner Clara Wu Tsai, and Connecticut Sun president Jennifer Rizzotti.
The players’ union reportedly is requesting less than 26% of league revenue, after opening negotiations at 40%, according to the report. The league is reportedly offering 15.5% of total revenue as of Thursday’s negotiations, plus other financial perks.
–Field Level Media
