Adam Silver had six-word response to state of WNBA CBA negotiations

Jeremy Beren

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Adam Silver had six-word response to state of WNBA CBA negotiations image

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The WNBA and the Women's National Basketball Players Association remain at odds amid contentious collective bargaining negotiations. The current agreement expires on Oct. 31, and the sides are far apart as the players -- currently entitled to 9.3 percent of league revenue -- seek historic financial gains amid unprecedented growth in the WNBA's stature.

WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert has come under fire amid a public dispute with Minnesota Lynx superstar Napheesa Collier, who is on the WNBPA's executive committee. Engelbert though is just one part of the equation. She reports directly to the person who hired her in 2019: NBA commissioner Adam Silver, who spoke Monday about the state of CBA negotiations.

MORE: WNBA execs hammer Napheesa Collier for alleged conflict of interest amid Cathy Engelbert feud

“Cathy Engelbert has presided over historic growth in the league but there’s no question that there’s issues that we need to address with our players, not just economic,” Silver said from NBC Sports headquarters in Stamford, Conn. “There’s relationship issues as well. I’m confident we can fix those over time and this league can continue to be on the rocket trajectory that it’s on right now.”

Silver though went a step further. Not only did he express confidence that Engelbert -- who reportedly is planning to step down as commissioner in the months ahead -- could repair fractured relations with the players' union; he guaranteed that a new CBA was just a matter of time.

"We will get a deal done with the players,” Silver said. “Lots of work left to be done, but we’ll of course get a new collective bargaining agreement.”

Engelbert on Friday remarked on the possibility that the sides could reach an agreement to extend negotiations past the Oct. 31 if a deal is close. But with players like Indiana Fever guard Sophie Cunningham openly discussing a work stoppage, Silver and Engelbert have a long road ahead of them to regain trust from a players' union determined to secure a larger slice of the revenue pie to get any deal done.

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Jeremy Beren

Jeremy Beren is a freelance WNBA writer with The Sporting News. A Phoenix native, he is a graduate of Arizona State University's Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication, and he has a decade’s worth of sports journalism experience. Jeremy's work has appeared in publications such as Marca, SB Nation, Athlon Sports and Vice Sports. He currently lives in Fayetteville, Arkansas.