The WNBA players have had complaints against officiating for a long time, but Napheesa Collier, with her latest shot, has taken the allegations a bit higher. Besides calling out the league for having the ‘worst leadership’, Collier, in her exit interview, alleged that Cathy had said: “Caitlin should be grateful she makes $16 million off the court, because without the platform that the WNBA gives her, she wouldn’t make anything.” If there was any room for mending ties, expect it to be kept on the shelf for the time being.

As expected, in the follow-up, these comments were strongly denied by the commissioner. However, it seems like denying them might have made reconciliation harder between the two. Discussing the potential meeting between Napheesa Collier and Cathy Engelbert, Ben Pickman, and Sabreena Merchant of the No Offseason: The Athletic Women’s Basketball Show had some interesting thoughts.

Ben Pickman said, “By Cathy Engelbert saying that she never said what Napheesa Collier said about Caitlin Clark, you’re basically calling Napheesa Collier a liar. And that sets up for another tense meeting. Not that it wasn’t going to be tense to begin with, considering Napheesa Collier said that Cathy Engelbert was the worst leader.”

The league and the players are already in a tussle over the CBA. Neither side wants to give up to their demands. But things took an ugly turn when Collier blasted the league boss with a series of allegations, apart from finances. “Do you know who I haven’t heard from? Cathy. Not one call, not one text. Instead, the only outreach has come from her No. 2, telling my agent that she doesn’t believe physical play is contributing to injuries. That is infuriating, and it’s the perfect example of the tone deaf, dismissive approach that our leaders always seem to take.”

In her defense, all that the commissioner could do was play on the safe lines: denial. Now it seems that Cathy Engelbert’s denial of any comments made regarding Catilin Clark seems to have backfired. According to recent reports, Napheesa Collier has called off the meeting that was scheduled to take place! During her press conference before Game 1 of the WNBA Finals, Cathy Engelbert had said that the comments made by Napheesa Collier in her exit interview, including the one regarding CC, were riddled with ‘inaccuracies’.

Cathy said in her press conference that, “Caitlin has been a transformational player in this league. She’s been a great representative of the game. She’s brought in tens of millions of new fans to the game.” These comments are a stark difference from what Napheesa Collier had revealed from her inside conversations. While the support for Caitlin Clark has been pretty significant since the revelations, especially from Sophie Cunningham, Clark has taken a different approach.

Caitlin Clark shows support for Napheesa Collier but refuses to comment on Cathy Engelbert’s comments

After Napheesa Collier’s exit interview, everybody was waiting to hear how Caitlin Clark would respond to the comments made by Cathy Engelbert. However, in her own typical style, she chose to focus on the bigger picture and the overall sentiments that Napheesa Collier wanted to convey with her statement. When asked about her thoughts on Collier’s comments, Caitlin Clark said the following:

“Well, I mean, first of all, I have great respect for Phee, and I think she made a lot of very valid points. And, I think what people need to understand, we need great leadership in this time across all levels.” Read that again. Without taking a dig, Clark talked about leadership and need in the same breath.

CC also said that this time is very crucial for the league, as with the financial and popularity boon they are in, the leadership also needs to make wise decisions. Yes, the sports need to improve the sport, but also make sure that the players who make the league what it is are also paid fairly.

When asked specifically about Cathy Engelbert’s comments on her, Caitlin Clark said that she had not heard to story Napheesa Collier had told. She also revealed that she had not heard from Cathy Engelbert either, whether to deny or confirm the story. While we cannot confirm whether Cathy Engelbert did indeed say all that about Caitlin Clark or not, the fact remains that the league is in danger of its first-ever lockdown if the disagreement over the new CBA remains.

There is indeed a lot riding on the meeting between Napheesa Collier, who is the Vice President of the WNBPA Executive Committee, and Cathy Engelbert. While this meeting has been called off, the hope still remains that the two parties can find a way to come to a solution that can ensure the league’s bright future.