WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert 2026 WNBA Draft Press Conference

[5:58] Welcome, everyone, to the WNBA Draft 2026, presented by State Street Investment Management [6:06] SPY. Welcome again, everyone. Introduce Commissioner Kathy Engelbert. Kathy? [6:12] All right. It's great to be here. Good evening, I guess it is now. Welcome to the 2025 WNBA Draft, [6:20] like Ron just said. I say this every season, I know, but draft night is truly one of the most [6:25] special nights of the year and one of the special moments on the WNBA calendar. We officially [6:31] welcome tonight the next class of stars into this league who will help take the lead to greater [6:37] heights. And this is really one of my highlights as commissioner, is having the opportunity over [6:41] the last two weeks or so to call each prospect that we invited here to New York City and invite [6:46] them to the draft. It truly is one of the best parts of the job. And then tonight, when you see [6:51] the joy on their faces and their family's faces when they walk across that stage and many of them [6:57] telling me that, you know, they're realizing a lifelong dream to play professionally. And it's [7:01] something I certainly never take for granted. It's a privilege to be part of it every year. So [7:06] we're thrilled to be back here at the shed in New York City for a night that marks the official tip [7:12] off of our 30th season. So as you are all well aware, because I've read plenty of your covers, [7:18] so thank you. This has been the busiest offseason in WNBA history, from the CBA, that little thing, [7:24] to the work we did throughout negotiations, including conducting an expansion draft, launching [7:29] the State of the Game Council, bringing in new corporate media partners, building our most [7:33] ambitious schedule yet, preparing for All-Star in Chicago in July, and now arriving here tonight. [7:40] It's been quite a six months. We've been working really hard. I have the best team in sports, [7:45] I think. And that's not even mentioning that little thing going on right now, free agency, [7:50] which I know you're all working hard to cover, and we're working hard to get all these contracts [7:55] signed, et cetera. So, but I really want to start by expressing my gratitude to everyone who helped [8:02] bring together what is the most historic CBA in women's sports history. The road to this [8:08] transformational deal, I call it historic, was not easy, as you know, and I'm incredibly thankful to the [8:13] players, especially the executive committee who put in so much time, the board of governors, [8:18] our board of governors, our outstanding team at the league office. This was a lot of time, [8:24] a lot of care, a lot of attention detail, which some of you sat through. And really, [8:29] it was a commitment to get it right. Like, everyone's like, why can't you get a deal done? [8:33] Well, we need to get it right because it led to a deal that delivered the single largest pay increase [8:39] in the history of sport. And from day one, we were aligned around a few key principles. And you've [8:45] all heard me talk about this and others, substantially increase player compensation, enhance the overall [8:51] player experience, but position the WNBA for long-term success. And I am proud to say we accomplished [8:59] those goals. You know, it's just, we introduced the first comprehensive revenue share model in the [9:05] history of women's professional sports. It increases pay at every level, as you're seeing from rookies [9:11] to superstars. For the first time, players will share in league and team revenues and directly benefit [9:18] from the continued growth of the WNBA. And fans can see more WNBA basketball because eventually we can [9:25] play, have the potential to grow up to 52 games by 2029. We added two developmental roster spots, [9:32] immediately creating 30 new opportunities in our league and giving teams greater flexibility to [9:38] develop talent and build deeper rosters. So many elements of this deal. A lot of people think it's [9:43] only about one thing. And yeah, the one thing is the big thing, but there's so many other elements [9:48] and you'll see it when we get the long form done. And I've been saying this, I don't know who's [9:54] actually said this quote, but history wasn't made in moments of comfort. It was carved out of [10:00] resistance, persistence, and time. And that was definitely this for those that followed more [10:04] closely. And while that took a tremendous amount of time, our teams across the league were working [10:10] really hard on every other aspect of the business. As I mentioned, we launched our state of the game [10:15] council, bringing together voices from across the basketball ecosystem to evaluate how the game [10:21] continues to develop. So we held many conversations during the off season, primarily focused on the [10:27] physicality of our game, ensuring our officiating standards evolve alongside the speed, talent, and [10:33] competitiveness that we're seeing on the court. That work led to the creation of an officiating task [10:39] force. And that was a dedicated group that spent hours reviewing film, evaluating calls, identifying areas [10:46] for improvement. So those insights are already shaping enhanced training and development for our referees [10:51] heading into the season. And we've had productive discussions around technology and innovation. And [10:56] we'll continue engaging with the whole stakeholder group to ensure as the game evolves, our basketball [11:02] operations evolve with it. At the same time, we continue to work really hard and elevate through new [11:08] expanded partnerships, both on the marketing side and the media slash broadcast side. So you we've reported on our [11:15] tranche one deals in a prior year, our media rights agreements, and now we finalize post CBA, our [11:21] additional tranche two partnerships with CBS, scripts ion and versa. USA network expanding our reach even [11:30] further. We also you might have seen over the last couple weeks of flurry of signed and renewed impactful [11:36] marketing partnerships that literally I think are going to grow the cultural relevance of our league and the [11:42] players to create new opportunities to connect with fans. Procter and Gamble and Mars are two of those. [11:48] Mars, we just announced this morning, Procter and Gamble last week. Those are huge brands joining the WNBA [11:54] family. And I mean, across all of these partnerships, the focus is the same, elevating the players of our league, [12:01] growing our fan base and continuing to build a sustainable business in the future. [12:07] And without these partners, we could not have delivered what we achieved in the collective bargaining agreement. [12:12] So there is a huge link there. And we're incredibly thankful for the partnerships of our media partners and our corporate partners. [12:18] Last week, we unveiled our full season 30 campaign announcing that this year will be both a celebration and a launch pad honoring the players, [12:29] moments and communities that built the WNBA while introducing our most ambitious slate of fan activations and storytelling platforms to date. [12:37] So this includes activations like our court origin nights, the legacy trail merch program. [12:43] We were over at the Empire State Building today and the players, the prospects all had the legacy trail Nike merchant merch on hoodies on and the top 30 plays series. [12:54] So our goal is to create a season long experience that brings fans closer to the WNBA than ever before, because we know the demand for our content is there. [13:04] That commitment also extends to how we show up in the communities across the country and like it through initiatives like line them up, [13:12] where we're painting the WNBA three point line on parks, a park courts nationwide, bringing the game directly to neighborhoods. [13:19] I was out in Chicago a little bit ago and talked about line them up. [13:23] And all of a sudden they were painting WNBA orange three point line so that young girls and boys can come to the courts and see where our players are shooting their threes from. [13:32] And so the past 30 years have been about building the foundation. [13:37] The next 30 are about scaling the game, unlocking what's possible for the entirety of the women's basketball and women's sports. [13:45] So I want to share that we're actively exploring the next phase of our global strategy. [13:52] You've heard me talk about kind of what's next globalization that will likely begin with some international preseason games with the long term goal of bringing regular season games to fans [14:02] around the world. We have a lot of fans around the world. We need to bring our game to them. [14:06] So we're currently exploring options outside of North America. [14:09] You know, Toronto tempo tipping off this year started with a preseason game in Toronto a few years ago, and we know there's strong and growing demand for our game internationally. [14:19] And expanding our global footprint is a major priority. [14:22] So look forward to sharing more on that in the near future. [14:25] But all of this to say, I'll take a breath here and answer some questions. [14:29] Season 30 arrives at what I think is the perfect moment, a historic CBA, new broadcast partnerships, two new expansion teams with three on the way. [14:40] Continued global expansion enhancements to the on court product and an exciting new rookie class that you're all going to see tonight. [14:47] And that's all coming off a record 2025 season. [14:51] So again, this starts a new chapter. [14:54] Can't wait for what's ahead. [14:56] And with that, I'm happy to answer any questions. [14:58] Thank you, Kathy. [15:00] We'll begin with question and answer. [15:01] If you would, when the mic is brought to you, please provide your name and your affiliation. [15:06] Kathy, we're going to start front row to your left. [15:09] Hey, Kathy, Doug Feinberg, the AP two part question. [15:13] First, the long form, when do you expect that to be finished for the CBA? [15:16] And the second part is, what would you say to the fans in Connecticut and the New England area that obviously are losing their team after this year and may get a team down the road? [15:23] But you said nothing before probably 2032 at the earliest. [15:26] So what would you say to those fans who have been obviously loyal and passionate for their team for the last 20 years? [15:30] Okay, long form CBA agreement. [15:33] As you all know, we spent a lot of time negotiating all of the changes from the prior CBA and a very significant term sheet. [15:40] 80 pages or something like that, 70 pages. [15:43] So now the long form will be four or 500 pages. [15:46] So we're making a lot of progress on that, and I expect that to be done in the near term. [15:51] Let me address the Connecticut situation. [15:54] As you know, coming off a significant expansion process for the WNBA, we had 13 cities bidding on, remember, what we thought was one team that we would grant. [16:05] Maybe it was 18 months ago now, and obviously we've now announced Cleveland, Detroit and Philadelphia in 28, 29 and 30. [16:12] We did not receive a bid from the Boston market or the New England market, obviously with the Connecticut team there. [16:19] The Mohegan tribe then hired a banker to represent them in the potential sale. [16:24] Or I think it started with a variety of options, a partial sale, minority sale, and ultimately they did reach agreement that you've read. [16:32] We have not got anything final at the WNBA yet. [16:35] When we get that agreement, we will put that through our governance process. [16:39] It'll be subject to our Board of Governors vote. [16:41] So, obviously, Connecticut has the opportunity under the sunset season, so I would say to the fans, support the Connecticut Sun this season. [16:51] And, you know, it's a great basketball state, obviously, for women's basketball. [16:56] Some would call it the center of women's basketball with how successful UConn's been over so many years. [17:01] So I would say, you know, stick with us, stick with the WNBA. [17:04] We know that fandom won't go away. [17:07] Kathy, our next two questions will come from right in the center, row two. [17:10] Jackie Howard. [17:12] Hi, Kathy. [17:13] Jackie Powell with the Nine Sports and NBC Sports. [17:16] You spoke about, during an interview on ESPN, how there was a lot of listening on your end involved in getting the CBA done. [17:24] I guess just what's a moment where you learn something that you didn't really think about when it came to some of what the players were asking for? [17:34] Yeah, I would say probably the main moment was housing, quite frankly. [17:38] I didn't know how important and emotional that was for them. [17:42] Because I just assume having two children in their 20s that, you know, who pay for their own housing, [17:46] that once they were making these much increased salaries, that that wasn't something they would need or want, but they made it very clear it was very important to them and it was an emotional issue. [17:56] So I'd say that was the major issue. [17:57] Everything else we, we wanted for the players. [17:59] Obviously, again, we're representing the owners. [18:01] We wanted to pay them more. [18:02] We wanted to give them more benefits up the 401k match, all the stuff that we did in this contract. [18:07] Um, and so probably the housing was one where they were very, very clear and we listened very, very hard and we got to a really good place together on that. [18:16] Also, next question, second row, Sifter. [18:20] Hi, Kathy. [18:21] Howard Magdal, the Nine Sports. [18:22] Good to see you. [18:23] Um, two, if I could just, the first part, um, we've had these conversations here about things like expansion and the CBA and, you know, a lot of questions, media rights that have now been sort of boxes checked. [18:37] And I guess as you sort of think about 2026, I know you, you referred to globalization, which I know we've talked about before, but is there sort of a box you would most like to check in 2026 and then something related to that? [18:50] Yeah, I think, uh, as we think about like our finite capital and how you allocate that capital, that's the job of every CEO is culture, strategy and capital allocation. [18:59] So that's my job as commissioner, um, is to think about what else could we invest in? [19:04] I mean, basketball technology is a big area where you see all sports using technology now, whether it's in officiating, whether it's in the fan engagement, digital, whatever it is. [19:14] So I would say in addition to global, um, technology, basketball technology and how we can use that most effectively and efficiently to make the fan experience better, make the game better for everybody, players and fans. [19:27] Just knowing that you have these things in place, the media rights deal, the CBA, how does it change the way in which you're able to have these conversations with potential partners and sponsors in the coming months? [19:40] It's a great question. So, um, one of the reasons, obviously we wanted to get a successful CBA done is to build the confidence and balance it with the ability for these companies to continue to invest in a league that's still in hyper growth mode and a league that is drawing a ton of confidence. [19:57] Because again, if you think about why you would sponsor the WNBA, I mean, again, our fan base, they're avid, they're rabid, they're loyal. Um, I think I saw a stat today that, you know, WNBA fans are 45% more apt to buy a product or service, uh, it went when a brand, uh, advertises in arena or on our broadcast than other sports leagues. [20:19] So that's a huge, um, advantage for the WNBA. So again, whenever I talk with corporate partners, I just don't talk about the WNBA. I talk about what are you trying to achieve in your business? [20:29] They're trying to grow their diverse consumer. They're trying to grow the women consumer. They know that 80% of every household consumer purchasing decision in the U S is made or influenced by a woman. [20:39] Like, so we can help meet them and help them grow their business. So, but the confidence now having longterm labor peace, having longterm media rights deals, the confidence in the league and its growth prospects are very high in every business. [20:52] You're trying to say to your investors or to your ultimate supporters, um, you know, invest in us because we're going to, we're going to be in growth mode. And I think both those things that we've gotten done over the past couple of years and expansion. [21:04] I mean, scale is important. 12 teams was nice, but 18 teams is a lot better. [21:09] I have 18 cities with huge fan bases, uh, and then globally going into, uh, Canada and then moving globally. [21:16] That all helps as well. [21:17] Kathy, next question. Front row to your left. [21:20] Hi, Kathy. Madeline Kenny with the New York Post. Um, Adam Silver was asked last month about just your, your future as the commissioner of the WNBA and he said he didn't know what you wanted to do. [21:31] So I guess I'm just curious, like what do you, how much do you want to stay the commissioner of the WNBA? [21:36] How much longer do you anticipate to be in this role? Um, well, thank you, Maddie. [21:41] I, I, I do crack up how everybody's focused on me and you should be focused on the hundreds of amazing women and thousands of women who run this league outside of myself. [21:51] Um, our women owners, our women board of governors, our women GMs and women head coaches and, and my whole team of, you know, diverse women and men who are working hard every day to get the 30th season tipped off by May 8th. [22:04] But I appreciate that you're focused on me as well. I wonder whether you would ask that of a man, by the way. Um, but I realize as women, we get asked different questions than men do. But, um, look, I'm so proud of this league and, um, we're working. I'm here, you know, working really hard to make the 30th season. [22:09] Our best ever and to continue to, to, you know, build that sustainable economic model. We know we need for the future. So, um, nothing else to report, which is probably why Adam didn't report anything. There's, there's no story here. [22:30] Uh, I'm thrilled with, um, our trajectory. I'm filled with the growth, thrilled with what we've done over the past couple of years and really looking forward to the next few years. [22:39] Kathy's staying in the front row to your left, all the way to the left. [22:43] Hi, Kathy. Another all nighter right there. [22:45] Annie Costable, the Langham Four. Um, [22:49] Um, my question is about, uh, salary cap circumvention. We've seen this, um, issue addressed over the last few years in the WNBA. [22:58] What measures are in place right now to ensure that this doesn't remain an issue in the WNBA under the new CBA? [23:05] Yeah, we, you'll see when the long form comes out, we did address, um, and add some language around, um, you know, things, things like relationships and, and things that, again, never foolproof for salary cap circumvention or tampering and free agency, all the things that teams might try to do outside of, uh, the normal course of business. [23:27] But, you know, we're certainly trying to address that and obviously have tools in place to detect and then obviously to discipline should, should, uh, fact patterns come to our attention. [23:37] Uh, Kathy standing to your right. [23:41] Uh, yeah. Hi, Dama Maury from the Hartford Current. [23:44] Uh, Kathy, in the event that it does become official and approved, how would you anticipate a transition of the Sun franchise playing out and taking place over the year? [23:55] I mean, would Houston people then have input in their personnel decisions, for instance? [24:00] I mean, what, how would that work in, in your mind? [24:04] Yeah, I think that question would be better asked of, uh, uh, the Houston soon to be comments, I guess, organization and Mohegan. [24:11] I know they're working through transition agreements. [24:13] I know this year they will play their games at Mohegan. [24:16] I think they have a couple games in Hartford and up in Boston, um, this year as well. [24:21] So, um, that's probably better addressed, but I'm sure whenever there's a transition like that, there's transition service agreements in place. [24:28] I'm sure they're talking a lot about management and GMs and coaches and things like that. [24:33] Um, you know, both in Houston and in Connecticut. [24:35] So again, we don't have a ton of visibility as they finalize that agreement and it comes to us for vote. [24:40] But that'll be something I'm sure this summer we can get an answer to. [24:44] Uh, Kathy, next question. [24:45] Second row left center. [24:46] Cassandra Negley, Yahoo Sports. [24:49] The officiating task force that you mentioned was going to shape, enhance training and development for referees. [24:55] What exactly did they find that they're putting into effect for the season? [24:58] Yeah, I think, as I mentioned in the finals presser, you know, we were evaluating plays, physicality calls, non calls, you know, kind of just trying to determine where the line should be. [25:09] We had input from players, including players on the executive committee of the PA. [25:13] We had inputs from college coaches, because I don't know if you watched the final four, there's pretty physical games going on there. [25:18] Um, and but pretty great. [25:21] Um, and we had input obviously from hours and hours of review by GM's head coaches and the rest of our stakeholders. [25:28] So, um, you know, more to come on exactly what that will mean. [25:31] But I think you'll see some changes in the officiating around that physicality this year. [25:36] Um, obviously it's going to take all sides to get used to it, the players and the officials. [25:41] Uh, and I think that'll play out over the year, but we certainly want to make sure that we're putting on the best product on the court. [25:47] Obviously it's going to be a physical game, but you know, we've got to draw lines and I think you'll see some more lines being drawn around that physicality as a result of some of the insights we gleaned from the state of the game committee and the kind of what I'll call officiating subcommittee where those were the people that were really watching the, you know, hundreds of hours of film. [26:05] Kathy staying on the left side, row two. [26:07] Hi, Kathy. [26:09] Thank you for taking the time. [26:10] Jeff Magalichetti with balls life.com. [26:12] I know the next CBA is long down the road in 2032, but I'm sorry. [26:17] What have you done for me lately? [26:19] But, um, when it comes to that point, what do you think the league learned from these last negotiations that could be useful when it's time to negotiate again at that point? [26:29] Yeah, I think again, as I've, you know, kind of done some debriefing on process and things like that. [26:35] Obviously, uh, you know, the interesting thing is we all wanted the same things for the players. [26:40] So we all had our list. [26:41] They all matched. [26:42] Um, there were things obviously used in negotiating and posturing and bargaining that might have, we might have differed on, but ultimately we wanted to kind of strike this great balance between significant increases in player salaries and benefits, uh, with, um, the economic sustainability of the league. [26:58] Cause women's sports is very fragile and can be very fragile. [27:01] And we wanted to make sure like we were setting this league up, not just for the next six, seven years under the CBA, but for the next CBA, which is why, you know, you saw some things games going up over time, housing phasing out over time, things like that to set up the professionalism of the league. [27:16] So, um, of course, there's a lot of things we learned, um, uh, of course that we would maybe do a few things differently next time. [27:23] But I think in the final analysis, it's almost like you had to have the process as it is. [27:28] If we had gotten done much earlier, I'm sure the players wouldn't have felt like they won and the owners wouldn't have felt good about it. [27:33] And I think we got to a really good place, um, you know, at the end, you know, you know, there were eight long, long days and nights. [27:41] And I think, um, next time I don't recommend a lot of all nighters like that. So that's the number one takeaway. [27:46] But I think in the final analysis, I think, you know, we really came together. [27:50] Um, the players were emotional. I mean, I'm pretty emotional seeing already $23 million contracts signed only two and a half days into free agency. [27:59] That's pretty incredible. And that's like now these players can build real generational wealth, including not just their salaries, their benefits and their 401k benefit and build real retirement and things like that. [28:11] So I'm so proud of what we did together. And I think, um, it's a moment in time we'll remember for, for a decade or two. [28:18] Kathy, next question. Row one left center. [28:22] Hey, Kathy, it's Meg Hall with USA Today. Um, last year, there was some tension between you and the players in terms of the relationship that you had. [28:29] How do you feel like that has progressed now that you've gotten through CBA negotiations and into this next season? [28:34] And do you feel like it's gotten better since, since those moments and into, into now? [28:38] Yeah, obviously we were in the midst of, you know, uh, collective bargaining and, um, you know, I feel really good about the relationship with the players. [28:46] I just saw Neko Ogumike on the orange carpet and, you know, we exchanged some great words with each other. I'm really proud of her. And she's headed back to LA. She called it headed back home. [28:55] Uh, even though we know she's from Houston, but, um, you know, just, uh, re really good about that. I mean, I understand that that makes great headlines and press and things like that. But, you know, this executive committee of the PA and my team just worked really hard to do something historic. And I think the players understand that, you know, we're on their side too. This wasn't a youth side, our side. [29:04] Although it seemed like that at times it's, you know, like I said, I'm, I'm in business now 40 years and some of my owners, some of our board of governor owners who are women who have been fighting, you know, gender equality their whole careers. I've been fighting for gender equality, my whole career. Um, and I think, you know, obviously there's a lot of posturing going on, but I think, you know, I think, you know, I think there's a lot of posturing going on, but I think there's a lot of posturing going on. [29:33] But, uh, um, I'm proud of what we accomplished together and I think, you know, we're in a good spot. [29:38] Kathy, right here to your right in the front row. [29:41] Hey, Kathy, how you doing? Daniel Artest from the 9450. [29:44] With, uh, Portland and Toronto officially building their rosters this month, we're seeing the league expand at its fastest rate in decades. [29:52] How are you, um, balancing the aggressive push for new markets with the need to maintain the elite level density of talent that makes the WNBA the most competitive league in the world? [30:04] Excellent question. That is something we considered even when we were thinking of going from 16 to 18 to make sure we're not diluting the talent across the league or the quality of the game. [30:14] But think about first and second round picks in the last six years since I've been here not making rosters and these players are elite players at the college level and they end up not making a roster. [30:24] So I think the more opportunities we can give players and then adding the development players too. [30:29] So we didn't have that before and adding 30 development players, two per team, two per 15 and longer term 36 with the 18 teams will be a great opportunity to give more players to develop into, you know, WNBA professional basketball players. [30:44] So, um, you know, I, I understand the balance here and we've been evaluating that and that's why again, two this year, none next year, and then one in 28, one in 29 and one in 30, but you do also need scale too. [30:56] And I think the competition will be really good. I think we're going to look at a lot of teams this year that can compete, especially with the, you know, the free agency period that a lot of players switching teams. [31:06] I think you'll see that next year into the 28 because 28 will be another, at least at that point, one team expansion draft, but excellent question. [31:14] All right, we have time for one more question. Cathy, that will come from third row to your left all the way on the end. [31:20] Cathy, congratulations again, Leo Chano Callao from Forbes. [31:23] Um, you talk about how the league and, you know, the W is an ever growing product and, you know, there's so much globalization going on, especially with a team in Canada now. [31:35] How close are we to getting global games in other parts of the world, such as Asia and Europe and just bringing the teams and the games over there to other audiences and other continents? [31:45] Right. I tried to tip off, um, by saying, um, we're heavily looking at that. Um, obviously this year we had the FIBA World Cup and we were just finishing CBA, et cetera. [31:56] Um, but next year I think you should expect that we're hopefully going to do something outside of North America for the first time as a global, a true global game. [32:04] Um, and then, uh, beyond that, then we have the Olympics in 28. So again, we're just trying to schedule out where we can go, where we can be. [32:11] Obviously we think huge success having at least gone across the border north, uh, to Toronto. [32:16] And we know because we're broadcasting over 200 countries and we're working on Spanish language on the WNBA app and things like that now. [32:25] And hopefully we'll deploy that at some point in the future and then just really get a good gauge of where we could, we could really have the big impact, um, whether it's in Asia or Europe. [32:34] But we're we're absolutely looking at it in longer term Africa, Kathy. Thank you. Thank you all. Enjoy the draft to our media reminder that all players who are in person tonight, all the 15 invitees will be brought through here for press conferences.