If everything proceeds as usual, we are approximately 10 to 12 weeks away from the WNBA Draft. However, negotiations over the Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) have stalled, leaving uncertainty about whether stars like Paige Bueckers and Caitlin Clark will play next season. This time last year, fans were focused on draft predictions without questioning the league’s continuity. Despite this uncertainty, the WNBA has already released its 2026 season schedule, which complicates matters.
The league wants everyone to believe the season will kick off on May 8th, but making that happen is far from simple. Rachel Demita highlights a potential dual issue: “The Indiana Fever will face the New York Liberty in their first preseason game on April 25th, followed by another preseason game against the Dallas Wings at home on April 30th,” she shared with Courtside Club. “The rivalry narrative has shifted from Caitlin Clark versus Angel Reese to Caitlin Clark versus Paige Bueckers, as the league seems intent on pitting these two against each other frequently.”
In an effort to boost its appeal, the WNBA appears to have shifted strategies. The Clark-Reese rivalry was a major draw for two seasons, attracting large audiences—2.25 million viewers tuned in for the June 2024 CBS game, and last season’s opener saw 2.7 million viewers on ESPN. Yet, the league has pivoted to focus on new rivalries. The Fever-Sky rivalry has been scaled down from four or five games in prior seasons to just three. Last season, Clark dominated that matchup, lessening the competitive drama with Reese.
This trend will be even more pronounced in the upcoming preseason. With Bueckers on the Wings facing Clark’s Fever, fans can expect at least four matchups between the two this season. Still, good health and presence on the court don’t guarantee standout performances, especially since the Wings are recovering from a rough season, with Bueckers being the lone highlight. No team wants to be labeled an underdog, particularly when strong teams like the Golden State Valkyries are performing so well.
Is this push for marquee matchups happening too quickly?
Preseason games are scheduled for April, with the regular season slated for the first week of May, but training camps must begin weeks earlier. Demita notes, “With camps starting well before preseason, everything is very uncertain and a lot remains unsettled.” The clock is ticking for the league and its players to finalize an agreement. According to Annie Costabile’s latest reports, general managers still don’t know the rules for the upcoming Expansion Draft, and over half of the league’s players will become free agents. Uncertainty also lingers around the standard draft format.
Questions abound about how many players each team can protect ahead of expansion, especially since a large portion of rosters will turn over due to free agency. The WNBA faces significant challenges, but time to address them is rapidly running out. So far, player demands have not been met.
What Are Caitlin Clark and the WNBPA Asking For?
The gap between the league and the players remains wide. The newest proposal offers players about 70% of net revenue, with an increase from 65% to 80% over time—but none of these figures are guaranteed. As reported by Sportico, the current net revenue model lacks a profit guarantee for owners, meaning teams could face losses if revenues drop or expenses rise excessively.
The players are pushing for a contract giving them 30% of total revenue, a simpler and more straightforward system than the league’s current one. Under their plan, the remaining 70% would cover league expenses and operations with no upfront costs. However, the league has yet to formally respond, and time is running short.
Players have already shown frustration with the schedule announcement. Azura Stevens posted a string of question marks on Instagram under the WNBA schedule reveal, and A’ja Wilson shared a video clip of someone banging a table, captioning it, “Me watching the schedule announcement.”
Unless progress is made soon, avoiding a lockout seems unlikely. Even if the season proceeds, it is hard to envision everything aligning smoothly for a May 8th start, as the league hopes.
Fan Take: This looming uncertainty hits at the heart of what WNBA fans cherish—the excitement of seeing top talents like Clark and Bueckers compete. If unresolved, the stalled negotiations and scheduling issues could dampen the sport’s momentum and alienate its growing fanbase, making it critical for the league and players to find common ground quickly.
