'Pay Us What You Owe Us': WNBA Players & Commissioner Paint Two Very Different Pictures Of CBA Talks

INDIANAPOLIS — When the WNBA All-Stars took the court in front of a packed house on Saturday, they sent a message to the league and Commissioner Cathy Engelbert. Each player wore a black T-shirt that read "Pay Us What You Owe Us."

It was a pointed reference to the ongoing battle over salaries and revenue sharing between players and the league.

The shirts followed a week of mounting tension surrounding negotiations for a new collective bargaining agreement (CBA). More than 40 players, including All-Star captains Napheesa Collier and Caitlin Clark, met with WNBA leadership on Thursday for a face-to-face session that, according to the players, made little progress.

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"I would think I would say just that the players, obviously, are taking this really seriously," said Collier, who also serves as vice president of the player's association (WNBPA). "We had the most participation in league history. I think we had close to 40 players in our league meeting. I think it is just a really strong message that we're standing really firm on certain areas that we feel strongly need to improve."

Clark echoed that sentiment while speaking to the media ahead of Saturday's All-Star Game. 

"That was the best part of it — being in the room, and there's over 40 other players in this league. I'm sure a lot more would have loved to be there if they were in Indianapolis," she said. "That's the most powerful thing — all the girls from across the league just being in that room together."

Were Cathy Engelbert And The Players Even In The Same Meeting?

Player frustration is at an all-time high. But when WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert took the podium just before tipoff, she offered a much rosier perspective. In fact, if you only listen to Engelbert, there doesn't seem to be an issue at all.

"I want a lot of the same things the players want," Engelbert told reporters. "That has not changed. But we also have to have a process where we go back and forth. And that’s where we are."

Engelbert described the league’s meeting with players as "constructive" and said she remains "really optimistic that we'll get something done that'll be transformational."

That characterization seemed to clash with what many players have expressed publicly. Multiple All-Stars have called the league’s initial proposal disappointing, far from what the players were asking for and even "a slap in the face." The WNBPA’s official statement following Thursday’s meeting called the proposal "unsustainable" and reaffirmed the players’ intent to "stay committed to the fight."

Asked directly why the league had not proposed a more dynamic revenue-sharing system — a central player demand — Engelbert pushed back.

"Well, that’s not accurate," she said. "There is a revenue share in our existing CBA that is expiring after this season. We were in a very different place in 2020 than we are in 2025. So I think you’ll see the revenue sharing be a much more lucrative one as we go forward, because we’re in a better place, quite frankly."

She added, "We want to significantly increase their salary and benefits, while balancing with our owners their ability to have a path to profitability."

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That balance, of course, is at the heart of the conflict. Clark, who makes most of her money from endorsements like Nike, acknowledged the gap between off-court earnings and on-court compensation.

"You know, honestly, I feel like that's where we're really fortunate, is that we have those other deals," she said. "I think that's one of the things that we're in the room fighting for. … We should be paid more, and hopefully that's the case moving forward as the league continues to grow."

Caitlin Clark and Kelsey Plum before the 2025 WNBA All Star Game at Gainbridge Fieldhouse.

(Trevor Ruszkowski-Imagn Images)

For now, the two sides remain far apart. The current CBA, of which players opted out last fall, expires in October. And while Engelbert said she’s "confident we can get something done by October," she also left room for delays, saying, "We can extend dates here and there … if we’re close."

Whether "close" actually reflects where the negotiations stand is unclear. Because there certainly are two different stories. 

For now, the disconnect between the players’ messaging and the commissioner’s public tone is growing louder — as loud as the message printed on the players’ chests.