WNBA and the players’ association, WNBPA, have worked on a landmark deal to secure a 400% pay increase for players. Amid celebrations of the new collective bargaining agreement (CBA), the story of an unsung hero has come to light. Claudia Goldin, who was the first woman to win the solo Nobel Prize in Economic Sciences in 2023, advised the association on this deal. However, that involvement came with a condition.
Goldin was recognized due to her pioneering work on women’s labor market outcomes. Her expertise seemed to coincide with something WNBPA was planning at the time, a better pay structure for WNBA players. Goldin received a number of requests and invitations for collaborations. However, she chose three, including supporting the cause of women hoopers in the country, but with a condition: she refused to get paid for it.
That led Terri Carmichael Jackson, Executive Director of WNBPA, to send a message to Goldin, requesting her to be part of the negotiations. Jackson was delighted when she heard back from the Nobel laureate via email. She said, via Marginal Revolution’s website:
“I remember just reading it and screaming.”
The new CBA deal will take the average salary of women players in the league to around $600k, with a minimum salary of $300k. The supermax extension is set to surge to $1.4 million and can go up to $2 million. The league now looks forward to a new season after the expansion draft and the 2026 WNBA draft.
WNBA expansion teams take their picks for 2026 draft
WNBA expansion teams Portland Fire and Toronto Tempo have made their calls to pick players from the 2026 WNBA draft or the expansion draft. The decision was made by a coin toss that fell in favor of the Tempo. The team chose the sixth pick in the first round of the WNBA draft over a first pick in the expansion draft.
The Fire, on the other hand, will have the first choice in the expansion draft and a seventh pick in the WNBA draft. The teams will have to protect their five players before the expansion draft, and the two expansion teams can pick from the rest. Any player who has five or more years of service after the 2025 season must be put on the roster list as an unrestricted free agent or included on the unprotected list.
READ MORE: What Is Max Salary a Player Can Make Under New CBA? A Closer Look at WNBA’s Historic Salary Boosts
When Does 2026 WNBA Season Start? Latest Update as New CBA Is Agreed Upon
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