NBA Commissioner Adam Silver said last Tuesday that the league’s collective bargaining agreement (CBA) will give a greater share of profits to the WNBA – the North American women’s basketball association.
During his appearance on NBC’s Today show, Silver was asked whether WNBA players should receive a greater share of the sport’s revenue.
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“Yes. I think ‘share’ is not the right way to look at this because there is a lot more revenue in the NBA. I believe we should look at the absolute numbers in terms of what they are earning. The players are going to get a big raise in this collective bargaining cycle, and they deserve it,” said the manager.
Before Silver’s appearance, which coincided with the start of the Confederations season, WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert had already pointed out that a win-win reform for the league was on the way.
Under the current agreement, professional athletes receive only 9.3% of the WNBA’s total revenue, while NBA players receive 49% of the profits.
During this year’s All-Star Game, big names from the women’s league entered the gym wearing t-shirts with the phrase “Pay us what you owe us” printed on.
Tension between the board and players worsened in September, after Minnesota Lynx star Napheesa Collier said the association had “the worst leadership in the world” and demonstrated a “lack of responsibility.”
So far, the deadline for the new agreement to be presented is October 31st. However, some of the leaders have already indicated that the presentation of the proposal may be delayed by a few days.
