WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert has come under heavy criticism lately for various issues, ranging from player safety and online abuse to the league’s handling of the transgender issue. Now The Ringer’s Seerat Sohi has weighed in with her take, describing the current league office as unimaginative.

“She’s probably gone. It’s kind of an open secret at this point. I doubt she even wants to do it anymore,” Sohi said while appearing on the FieldHouse Files with Scott Agnes on August 12.

“The current regime, I think, has just been around for so long that there is a culture of a lack of transparency and a culture of cynicism, almost like this league office is not very imaginative.

“And I look, I don’t want to hold your feet to the fire too much for this because I think this is the history of women’s basketball in a lot of ways. There’s one side that’s very imaginative, and there’s also a side of it that is very pragmatic.”

For Sohi, the league has never utilized the aspects that make it distinct and appealing to the viewer base.

“The league has never had a great understanding of what actually makes it special. So, it’s never really done a very good job of telling its story.”

Back in June, Engelbert came under fire regarding officiating in the league, the lack of refereeing consistency, and accountability surrounding missed calls. Fans and experts criticized the commissioner for failing to protect arguably the league’s biggest asset, Caitlin Clark, from excessive physical play. This was against the backdrop of when Phoenix Mercury forward Alyssa Thomas got hit with a retroactive Flagrant 2 and a one-game suspension in June 2026, after her fist made contact with Caitlin Clark’s throat during a scramble for a loose ball against the Indiana Fever.

Engelbert then came under fire again as Thomas received hate and abuse online, with the question of player safety emerging from different roots.

After all this came the issue of transgender players and their participation in the WNBA. The saga started after Sophie Cunningham’s comments in an interview with ESPN. The controversy erupted, with rallies being organized outside Indiana games and notable figures including members of the US Congress, players and coaches around the league, and even US Vice President JD Vance weighing in with their take.

For weeks, Engelbert was criticized for not publicly addressing the highly polarizing stance, and only on Wednesday did the league release a statement after the anti-hate task force meeting between all the team presidents and GMs took place. While the statement urged to “engage all league stakeholders in the coming weeks and months”, fans remain unconvinced, as the league said that no immediate eligibility matters affect the WNBA at the moment.

Caitlin Clark’s biographer,  Christine Brennan, also said that Engelbert did a “terrible job” of handling the transgender issue by directing it to be looked at by the anti-hate task force.

So, Cathy Engelbert’s hold on the WNBA’s top job looks less secure than it has at any point in her tenure. Front Office Sports has reported that her contract runs out at the end of this year, and when she was asked point-blank about her status heading into 2027, she sidestepped it, saying only that she felt blessed to be at the helm of this league during its growth spurt.

The fans have turned on her in large numbers. She was drowned out by boos while handing the New York Liberty their Commissioner’s Cup trophy at Barclays Center, and that came after she’d already been heckled during the 2025 All-Star game and again at the WNBA Finals trophy ceremony.

Engelbert also skipped the league’s 30th-anniversary game between the Sparks and the Liberty and the 2026 Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame induction, and that did not exactly help in quieting the rumors.