The WNBA and WNBPA came together at the CBA negotiating table on Tuesday, meeting for what became a 12-hour bargaining session stretching into Wednesday's early hours — and failing to reach a deal.
Union president Nneka Ogwumike led the player contingent at the midtown Manhattan marathon meeting, joined by WNBPA VPs Breanna Stewart and Alysha Clark, and treasurer Brianna Turner.
New York Liberty owner Clara Wu Tsai also reportedly joined the CBA talks alongside WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert and head of league operations Bethany Donaphin.
The in-person sit-down came on the heels of the league's March 10th deadline, set to preserve the scheduled May 8th tipoff of the 2026 WNBA season while also allotting for an expansion draft, free agency, and college draft — all before team training camps begin on April 19th.
"Conversations are continuing, as they need to be," WNBPA executive director Terri Jackson told media Wednesday morning, declining to give a concrete timeline but noting that things were "going in the right direction."
"We're working hard... and still have work to do," Engelbert noted, calling the talks "really important to the future not just of the league, but of women's sports."
While the parties have yet to agree on terms, the overnight marathon indicates a willingness on both sides to continue communicating — rather than hop on the picket line.
