Key Highlights
- ET on Friday, and the league and its players union will likely enter into a stage of "status quo," where both sides can continue to negotiate, no player benefits are lost and a work stoppage or lockout can be declared without notice. The WNBPA opted out of the previous CBA in October 2024, and 15 months later, there is no deal in place.
- According to sources on both sides, negotiations have netted minimal progress."We know what we're asking for," Collier told ESPN on Thursday.
- "We know that it's not too much, like they're saying."Ogwumike and Collier shared their thoughts on the tenor of the negotiations, their relationship with commissioner Cathy Engelbert and why they believe their involvement in other leagues is not a conflict of interest. This interview has been edited for length and clarity. ESPN: Over the past few months, more information has been reported about the league's and the players' proposals, with numbers and information changing frequently, but as of right now, how would you describe the state of negotiations?Collier: Obviously, we'd hoped that we would be a lot farther along than we are, because it's been about [15] months at this point, but at the same time, we have to stay strong in what our values are and what we're standing for.
- The players feel really united right now.
- We're waiting for the league to come back, and we're not going to accept a bad deal.