Halloween in the WNBA is a lot scarier this year. The current CBA officially expires the day after Halloween and there’s no resolution. While the war between Cathy Engelbert and the players escalates, fans are getting so desperate, they’d even summon the witches of Hocus Pocus for a hex that ends this. Yet witchcraft is not an option. Carmelo Anthony has a different kind of advice for the players and fans of the WNBA.

The new NBC analyst was on CNBC to talk a variety of things including the breakdown of the WNBA’s CBA negotiations. For starters, Melo said that the female basketball players are ‘absolutely underpaid,’ before putting this saga – from the WNBPA rejecting the existing CBA before it expires to calling out the leadership – into perspective.

“We see the WNBA game growing, right? And when you’re growing, and you’re a part of that growth, you want to participate in the upside of that growth, and that’s all that we’re seeing from these WNBA players.” he further added,  “Now, they understand what’s going on. They’re not saying, ‘Hey, give us all the money.’ They just want to participate in the upside, in the growth of where this WNBA is actually going.”

He knows how this goes and the emotions it stirs on both sides. That’s why Melo says, “If we can sit and have those honest and open conversations, then yes, we can figure this out. I think that it’s going to get ugly before it gets better. And I just want the women to understand that it’s going to get ugly and be prepared for when it gets ugly. And if you’re not prepared for that, let’s figure this out. The money is going to come.”

The key advice from Melo is that the ladies need to be prepared for things to get worse. The WNBA’s growth has been exponential since the 2024 draft class. Along with excitement, Anthony asks the ladies. “be patient. Continue to fight. Be patient, but understand and have a real plan and strategy on what you’re fighting for.”

One might ask why the WNBA should listen to Carmelo Anthony and not go scorched earth instead. But he’s speaking from experience.

Carmelo Anthony didn’t take his own advice during CBA talks

Carmelo Anthony has no stakes in the WNBA, unlike his best friend, Dwyane Wade’s investment in Chicago Sky. He’s not had ownership experience except once saying he wants to buy a stake in the Wizards. He’s not been involved in women’s basketball while he starts his NBA analyst career under NBC. So what makes him the authority to say the CBA will work out with some patience.

The Hall-of-Famer of two months has been front and center of Collective Bargaining Agreements more than once. The impending 2011 NBA lockout was a factor in him demanding a trade out of Denver and landing him in New York. He was also the vice president of the NBPA during the 2016 CBA talks. The latter had a fair bit of impatience.

He was usually the one addressing the media. Every time the discussions went nowhere, Melo expressed skepticism about reaching an agreement before the deadline. His doubts were unfounded and the NBA and the players agreed on a tentative CBA in December 2016, within the week of his comments. The new CBA went through the 2023-24 season when Melo officially announced his retirement.

For what it’s worth, the ladies are showing patience despite the animosity with Cathy Engelbert’s leadership. Both sides have agreed on a 30-day extension a day before the original October 31 deadline, making the new deadline November 30. It comes after the players union publicly accused the league of not showing urgency to agree to a CBA.

While Melo might be asking the WNBPA to take things easy, he’s very much rooting for them. Words of the experienced might just be what the players need.