It’s 3 days to the March 10 deadline, and the WNBA-WNBPA are far away from a CBA agreement. The WNBPA remained unwavering on Wednesday, March 4, that the league’s current proposal “is not worth taking.” The statement came in light of a viral report about Breanna Stewart and Kelsey Plum’s leaked letter that expressed “serious concerns” about the players’ own representation. Now, Las Vegas Aces player representative Chelsea Gray has revealed how communication works between the players and the WNBPA.

“I think the player rep could be complex at times. You sit on calls that are not open to all players because sometimes that can get a little hectic when you have all the players on,” Gray said. “It’s also to take certain messaging and send it over so my team can actually see it and get their opinions on it, and then take that back to the union, to the executive committee so they can understand where my team stands on certain issues or where we see importance throughout the CBA negotiations.”

Gray also explained how her relationship with the Las Vegas Aces squad helps her get the truth out of them. Something they might not tell Napheesa Collier or Breanna Stewart, they would tell Gray, someone they have spent a season or multiple with. From Gray’s point of view, the communication within the team has been “fine.” And that she has been helped by the leadership whenever required.

This smooth flow of communication is really important in ensuring everybody is on the same page while the process is actually happening. While most players have avoided publicly criticizing the union’s process, Natasha Cloud offered a rare example of the kind of concern that sometimes surfaces.

“My biggest concern has always been the middle man… In all of these CBAs, and this isn’t no knock on anyone, our rookies have been taken care of and our 1 percent has been taken care of and that’s still true in this CBA,” she said. Not everyone will be as outspoken as Cloud, especially against their own Union.

So, changes are finally taking place. Addressing the issues raised by Breanna Stewart and Kelsey Plum, the union held a call with its players Tuesday night. Despite the rumblings, Stewart maintained that they remain united in these negotiations. Chelsea Gray insisted that the players are ready to strike.

Chelsea Gray Acknowledges Financial Planning Around Potential WNBA Strike

The WNBA players already voted; they are ready for a strike back in December “ when necessary.” Even recently, the WNBPA released a survey that asked, in part, if they would “accept the league’s proposal of 50% of net revenue, which is less than 15% of gross revenue in an eight-year deal or ask the union to keep negotiating?”

84% of the players who responded said that they “would not accept 15% and want the union to keep negotiating.” However, it was unclear how many respondents were included in the vote. However, a strike has multiple drawbacks for the players.

One of them being, their pay will be stopped along with their access to facilities. For the top half of the league that earns in millions, that’s still manageable. But the rest take a major hit. To prepare for this situation, Chelsea Gray revealed that a directive was rolled out.

“Some players have spoken about a directive to start preparing in case there would need to be a strike, to save your money. Do different things like that. Is that something you actually took to action?” Asked a reporter. “I know you’re probably in a unique position with Unrivaled and all these different things that you’ve had success in to have maybe more financial security, but I’m wondering if there was an intentional choice you made to get there.”

To which Gray answered, “Yeah, I think we said if it comes to it, it was an overwhelming percentage that said yes, we’ll be okay going on strike.” However, she insisted that this was a personal call. “Obviously financially that comes into play, but I think there’s also this mentality that where does it stop?” Gray said. Where are you comfortable doing it individually? That’s everybody’s choice, but for me, I was okay giving my okay. If this doesn’t come with what we want, then I’m okay doing that.”

Maybe various brand decisions and participation calls were based on preparation for that. The Project B contracts, Unrivaled arrivals, and others maybe wouldn’t have happened for some if not for a potential lockout. Keep in mind that almost every player agrees that they “want to play.” With long-term implications, the following weeks are set to be the most important in WNBA history.