With the WNBA offseason underway, tensions are running high. The current CBA expires next week, and with no new deal in sight, players and league officials are locked in high-stakes negotiations. The usual back-and-forth has only intensified in recent days, with both sides issuing public statements.

Complicating matters further is a pair of players themselves. Breanna Stewart and Napheesa Collier, the co-founders of the offseason league Unrivaled, have been active in discussions, but it’s their league that’s now being viewed as a potential threat to the WNBA’s interests. As ESPN’s Brian Windhorst put it while speaking on Front Office Sports today: “The negotiations and the revenue sharing are more complicated. You also have something that the NBA doesn’t have, which is potential rival leagues. You have Unrivaled, which is already operational, and you have the potential that other international leagues may start to rival the WNBA.”

Well, the 3×3 league that came into existence just last season has made tremendous progress in just one year. With investors like Serena Ventures, Warner Bros. Discovery, and soccer legend Alex Morgan’s Trybe Ventures, as well as buy-ins from NBA players Trae Young and Franz Wagner, the league is now planning to use this funding to expand its Miami venue.

And all this they’re able to do while paying the highest average salaries in women’s team sports. So, as they grow, they’ll be increasing pay and equity for participating players as well. As Alex Bazzell puts it: “[Players] are largely majority shareholders… They are going to reap the benefits of these growing valuations.”

So, it’s quite understandable that Unrivaled, valued at $340 million in its Series B investment round, will lure players as a better option than going overseas or playing in the WNBA should a lockout happen. Things stand in their favor, especially since the W’s revenue sharing is far more complicated. WNBA owners have only 42% of league equity, while the NBA owns another 42% and the remaining 16% belongs to a 2022 investment consortium.

But Unrivaled isn’t the only major competitor. There’s another upcoming league for top stars, unofficially called Project B, a Formula 1- and LIV Golf-inspired pro women’s 5-on-5 league. It is set to play seven two-week tournaments in major cities across America, Europe, and Asia with six 11-player teams. The league plans to debut in the fall of 2026, running from November through April. While it won’t conflict with the current WNBA calendar, it’s enough to lure top players.

But is it the first time Unrivaled has been seen as conflicting with the WNBA?

Earlier this season, Napheesa Collier, who is also the WNBPA vice president, was accused of causing a lockout to help her Unrivaled league. However, she brushed off the assumptions, saying: “So let me get this straight… while everyone else was enjoying fireworks, you were thinking about how me and Stewie of all people are conspiring to force a lockout that would result in less money year-round for WNBA players??”

For her, Unrivaled is rather intended to strengthen player bargaining power and demonstrate what a well-structured, player-friendly model could look like – more like setting an example.

What’s next for WNBA?

As the W’s current CBA expires soon, players are pushing for higher salaries, better revenue-sharing structures, improved benefits and working conditions, and flexibility and protections in an era where rival leagues are emerging. And while Cathy Engelbert has publicly stated the league’s desire to reach a “transformative deal,” players signal frustration with the pace and scope of negotiations. And Napheesa Collier’s exit interview has only fanned the flames.

Now, it’s NBA commissioner Adam Silver, participating in the conversations to help. But even his statement raised eyebrows and triggered WNBPA. “Share isn’t the right way to look at it because there’s so much more revenue in the NBA. You should look at absolute numbers in terms of what they’re making, and they are going to get a big increase in this cycle of collective bargaining, and they deserve it.” Silver said during his appearance on NBC Sports this week.

However, if you listen to the WNBPA, the league is just trying to limit the cost of labor. The back-and-forth doesn’t end there, since the WNBA released a statement claiming the players are exaggerating: “It is incorrect and surprising that the Players Association is claiming that the WNBA has not offered an uncapped revenue-sharing model that is directly tied to the league’s performance.”

And that’s exactly where the WNBA stands as of now, with just one week remaining before a potential lockout. So, what do you think will happen?