With Cathy Engelbert set to retire at the end of 2026, the WNBA is preparing to select its next commissioner. ESPN reported that the search process is expected to start later this month, if not sooner, after Engelbert submitted a succession plan and a list of potential internal and external candidates to NBA commissioner Adam Silver. Minnesota Lynx coach Cheryl Reeve has already outlined the qualities she believes the league needs in its next leader, while making clear that she does not want the job.

“Absolutely not,” Reeve said when asked whether she would consider becoming the WNBA’s next commissioner, MPR News’ Anika Besst reported.

On September 4, Engelbert announced her retirement after taking over the role in 2019. While her tenure was not seen in a positive light by many, her term saw multiple historical feats, including historic attendance in consecutive seasons. Under the 2026 Collective Bargaining Agreement, multiple WNBA stars signed contracts worth over a million dollars. Under her leadership, the league also signed a historic $2.2 billion media rights deal.

While Engelbert’s term saw a lot of financial success, league executives slammed her for her absence from controversies and for not winning the trust of owners and stakeholders. One of the executives told Sports Business Journal that the Commissioner’s role needed to have a base with people.

“You don’t necessarily make a lot of friends along the way. That’s not the point,” Reeve said. “But you have to have the ability to collaborate and connect with people, and to do your job and to sort of steward the path of the WNBA.”

Aside from being the head coach of the Lynx, Reeve also serves as the president of basketball operations for the team. She is not inexperienced in front-office roles. On Monday, Reeve held the first press conference since the end of the 2026 FIBA World Cup, where Team USA won gold.

While she doesn’t have any personal interest in taking the job, the Lynx head coach has a checklist for whoever is selected to take over the role. 

“Most people don’t know the full scope of a commissioner’s job, and I think that there’s a lot of boxes maybe the person, an ideal person, could check,” she told reporters.

Engelbert served as CEO of Deloitte before she took over the role. She knew how to handle the business side. However, it was the relationship part with owners, executives, and her star players that she fell short on. Cheryl Reeve wants the next WNBA Commissioner to have that balance.

“I think your key stakeholders having the buy-in and, you know, at least have a pulse on things. I think that’s important,” she said. “So you can’t just be a business person. You can’t just be a relationship person.”

Reeve is not alone in wanting that balance in the next WNBA Commissioner. According to several executives in the league, the financial side is mostly meeting its end. The average valuation of a team has reached $400 million, and the money is still coming in. However, it’s the “goodwill” that the league needs right now. 

“Whoever vets the candidates for WNBA commissioner should start with someone who can work a locker room and a corporate room, someone who can mesmerize the masses with a speech,” the executives said, per SBJ.

Engelbert had come under fire for her absence from big WNBA moments, including controversies. In her term, she never attended the Indiana Fever games since Caitlin Clark joined the league. Last year, Engelbert received massive backlash after Napheesa Collier’s fiery exit interview. This season, Phoenix Mercury’s Alyssa Thomas slammed Engelbert for not intervening amid online harassment and threats. Tensions reached a boiling point after the WNBA’s transgender participation controversy.

Having relationships with players, executives and ownership would have allowed the leadership to have tough conversations and perhaps avoid things getting out of hand. It is one of the desirable aspects that the league has found unanimity on.

So far, Michelle Obama and Kamala Harris have made the speculated list of future WNBA Commissioners.