With all eyes on the WNBA’s midseason showcase Saturday, the league’s top players took advantage of the platform to make a big statement.
As the WNBA All-Stars took the court for warm-ups in Indianapolis, all the players for both Team Collier and Team Clark were wearing shirts that read, “Pay Us What You Us.”
The reference is crystal-clear: WNBA players are expecting a big increase in salaries in their new collecting bargaining agreement. The current CBA expires Oct. 31 following the end of the 2025 season.
Early talks are ongoing, and the story was a dominant theme during All-Star Weekend.
"We were disappointed, for sure," WNBPA vice president Napheesa Collier told ESPN on Friday of the latest offer from the league. "What they came back with was just nowhere near what we asked for or even in the same conversation."
Amid record TV ratings, soaring franchise valuations and a wave of new expansion teams, negotiations are expected to be lengthy, and an unprecedented work stoppage remains a possibility.
The WNBA, as a whole, is not currently profitable. The league’s new media deal with ESPN, NBC and Amazon — worth $200 million a season for 11 years — gives the league a shot to get in the black for the first time.
Players have surely notice the sharp rise in franchise valuations and expansion fees, however.
Consider the players’ message a big salvo in those talks.
And the players’ union is clearly hoping to win over fans to their side of the labor battle.
Even before the game had ended, officially licensed versions of the shirt from the WNBPA were available for purchase on Breaking T.
"It came together fast," Breaking T president Jamie Mottram told cllct, comparing it to similar shirts the company sold in 2020 in support of the U.S. women's soccer team's campaign for equal pay.
The shirts start at $32 and are in available in both men’s and women’s styles and hoodies.
Kevin Jackson is the chief content officer for cllct, the premier company for collectible culture.