Caitlin Clark has a simple solution for the WNBA's exhausting CBA negotiations: get in a room and don't leave. As the deadline looms, Clark cut through the noise with a blunt take on how business should be done.

"I don't understand why we don't just get in a room and iron it out and shake hands, that's how business is. You look each other in the eye, you shake hands, you respect both sides. For me, that's what I would love to see." Clark told the media during a Team USAB practice session held in Miami.

The WNBA sent a counterproposal to the union on March 6, a last-ditch effort to finalize the deal after a tiring 16-month negotiation. But there is still a belief that both parties are still far apart and have not yet found a common ground.

The league has set March 10 as the deadline to resolve matters with the players’ union. With the players refusing to budge, the league now risks a delay due to the possibility of a player strike or a lockout, in which owners would refuse to allow the players to work.

Neither scenario benefits any party. Moreover, she has experience negotiating highly paid contracts, thanks to the multiple NIL deals she has signed since her rookie year began. That's why WNBPA Vice President Breanna Stewart agrees with Clark's take as well.

“We want the deal to be done, we want to have the season. We just need to find the right numbers that reflect it. I think that would be great for us all to sit in a room until we really get it done. If that means sitting in there for hours and hours at a time, let’s do it."

Stewart will not be travelling to Puerto Rico to take part in the FIBA Women's World Cup qualifiers, which gives her ample time to be available for an in-person negotiating session.

Will The Latest WNBA Proposal Help Reach an Agreement?

Long story short, the answer is still no. The league remains far from meeting the union’s demands, which is one of the reasons why Clark has suggested a sit-down negotiation between both parties.

If the parties agree on revenue sharing and the salary cap, they would at least need a handshake agreement to avoid delaying the season scheduled to begin on May 8.

Should the league be officially signed by the end of the month, they will finally move on to the expansion draft for new franchises in Portland and Toronto in the first week of April, followed by the WNBA Draft scheduled on April 13.

“I think it’ll be tight. Hopefully, we do come to a resolution sooner rather than later. But even if we do, it’s like these other things that need to happen need a moment. You shouldn’t have to rush the expansion draft or free agency.” Stewart said, who has been quite vocal about not wanting the season to be delayed.

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Written by

Joy Bassy

Edited by

Siddharth Shirwadkar