By no means has the WNBA been extra in style.
However with that elevated consideration comes scrutiny, and because the WNBA opens its twenty ninth season Friday, the league is nearing an thrilling but pivotal inflection level.
Rather a lot has modified because the Liberty had been topped champions final October.
The league expanded to 13 groups with the addition of the Golden State Valkyries.
Diana Taurasi and Elena Delle Donne retired.
The teaching carousel included the hiring of eight first-time WNBA head coaches.
Rosters had been overhauled. A few of the greatest names within the recreation — together with Brittney Griner, Satou Sabally, Alyssa Thomas and Kelsey Plum — moved to new groups.
The WNBA welcomed an thrilling rookie class, headlined by UConn star Paige Bueckers.
The offseason tales will proceed to form the narratives round this WNBA season.
With Kahleah Copper, Sabally and Thomas as an enormous three, how good will the Mercury be?
Will Seattle’s new additions, together with No. 2 choose Dominique Malonga, push the Storm into title rivalry?
What is going to the Dream appear like with Griner and Brionna Jones sharing the ground whereas a lot of the league makes the shift to the fashionable four- or five-out offenses?
How scared ought to the league be of the Fever, that includes a beefed-up Caitlin Clark and her revamped ensemble?
However these storylines are solely a part of the complete image.
In the event you thought this previous free company cycle was wild, simply watch for what 2026 has in retailer.
Not solely will the WNBA be including two extra franchises — in Toronto and Portland — into the combo, however all however two veterans are going to be free brokers on the finish of this season.
“That just creates an interesting prism through which we are all going to be viewing this season,” ESPN play-by-play commentator Ryan Ruocco mentioned. “There’s going to be just an intrigue and a tension there throughout the season that’s going to then end up leading into what will be the most consequential and exciting offseason that we’ve ever had in the history of this league.”
Mercury basic supervisor Nick U’Ren in contrast subsequent yr’s free company to a fantasy soccer draft.
Liberty basic supervisor Jonathan Kolb mentioned the optionality and unprecedented nature of what awaits subsequent season is thrilling.
“It’s incredibly rare to have an opportunity to reset,” Kolb mentioned. “We’ll see what the league looks like from a rules perspective, a cap perspective, all of those things, and be able to make the best decision we can at that time once we have that information.”
All these questions that stay unanswered pertaining to the collective bargaining settlement will must be fleshed out earlier than any of that chaos can ensue. With that mentioned, the following couple of months of negotiations are of heightened significance. The present CBA expires after this season.
Elevated participant salaries within the wake of the WNBA’s landmark media rights deal, valued at $2.2 billion, in addition to improved participant experiences, are prime priorities for gamers.
And the Ladies’s Nationwide Basketball Participant Affiliation has made it clear it would keep on the negotiating desk so long as it takes to get a deal that is sensible for each events — even when meaning a doable work stoppage.
large adjustments within the WNBA subsequent offseason affords an awesome
alternative for groups to “reset.” Michelle Farsi / New York Publish
It’s in the perfect curiosity of each the WNBA and its house owners and the gamers union to achieve a deal earlier than a strike occurs. And each side have outwardly expressed optimism {that a} new CBA might be “transformational.”
It’s all gearing up for what could also be one of the anticipated WNBA seasons so far.
“You’re going to continue to see this level of excitement grow and grow,” ESPN WNBA analyst Rebecca Lobo mentioned. “We had extra curiosity on this previous free company than we ever had. The previous two drafts have been our two highest-rated drafts that we’ve ever had on ESPN.
“It’s not just going to be about what’s happening on the court and what’s happening off the court with these players. It’s going to be about the future of this league, the CBA, what is this going to mean? … It just helps increase the level of excitement, you know, what we see on the floor, but also in a broader way, as well.”
