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WNBA stars fired off a message to the league before the All-Star game on Saturday night when the players expressed frustration over the negotiations for a new collective negotiation agreement.
The players had t-shirts that said “Pay us what you owe us” during warm-ups.
Shirts included Women’s National Basketball Players Association (WNBPA) logo.
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Caitlin Clark from Indiana Fever wears a shirt that says “Pay us what you owe us” before the 2025 WNBA All-Star game at Gainbridge Fieldhouse 19 July 2025, in Indianapolis. (Steph Chambers/Getty Images)
The game contained Team Caitlin Clark against Team Napheesa Collier. Both players were appointed captains for the game. Both All-Stars came out wearing the shirts. Clark did it even though she is the sideline of the game due to a groin injury.
The players met with league officials on Thursday and the pages did not reach an appointment. Chicago Sky star Angel Reese was one of many WNBA players who have expressed criticism of the league’s handling of negotiations.
“It was an eye -opener for me. Like hearing things and hearing things and not things that I was glad to hear. It was disrespectful the things we were sent back, the suggestion that we were sent back,” she said Friday.
Indiana Fevers Aliyah Boston warms up on Saturday, July 19, 2025, ahead of the WNBA All-Star game at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis. (Grace Smith/Indystar/USA Today Network via Imag images)
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“It’s important to be able to be vocal. If I am leaning back, it seems that I don’t care.”
New York Liberty star Sabrina Ionescu said the players would not settle for “minimum” in the negotiations, while Phoenix Mercury player Satou Sabally called the league’s latest CBA offer a “clap in the face.”
WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert told Associated Press after the meeting that the meeting was “constructive.”
WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert speaks during a news conference before WNBA All-Star Basketball Game on Saturday, July 19, 2025 in Indianapolis. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)
“It was very constructive dialogue. I think you know, of course, that part of the process is to go back and forth and listen to the players. They listen to us and the owners who represent the board council,” Engelbert said. “I still feel really optimistic that we can get some transformation done by the exit. But it’s a process.”
