Negotiations are often a game of leverage, but according to former NFL star and sports commentator Marcelus Wiley, the WNBA Players Association (WNBPA) might be playing a game of Russian Roulette with the league’s future. In a scathing critique that has ignited the basketball world, Wiley tore into the union’s leadership—specifically targeting Vice President Napheesa Collier—for what he sees as a dangerous disconnect between their demands and the league’s financial reality.
The “Reality Check”
Wiley’s central argument is simple: The players are “feeling themselves” too much. He points to the cold, hard data: The WNBA has allegedly operated in the red for 27 consecutive years, subsidized almost entirely by the NBA. Yet, in the midst of the league’s first true “growth spurts”—driven largely by the arrival of Caitlin Clark—the union is reportedly rejecting an offer that would quadruple the max salary.
“They going up to $1.2 million… that’s a 400% increase,” Wiley noted, referencing reports of the league’s proposal to raise the max salary from roughly $241,000 to over $1 million. “But then this is how you lose it. You be like, ‘I want way more than I even deserve.'”
Wiley compares the situation to a divorce settlement where one party wants half the assets without acknowledging they spent all the money during the marriage. “These owners are like, ‘Dog, we’ve been spending for y’all forever… take some of this L. You can’t take the upside without taking the downside.'”
The Conflict of Interest
Perhaps the most damaging part of Wiley’s analysis is his focus on Napheesa Collier. As a VP of the union, Collier is a lead negotiator. However, she is also a co-founder and executive of “Unrivaled,” the new 3-on-3 league that competes with the WNBA for players, sponsors, and attention.
Wiley argues this is a massive conflict of interest. “You’re negotiating with your employer while simultaneously building a competing business,” he pointed out. He also resurfaced a controversial comment Collier made in December 2024, where she described the WNBA as having been in the “feces” for years.
“Trashing the league that made you a millionaire… while trying to negotiate for more money from that same league? That’s not leverage, that’s scorched earth,” Wiley said. He argues that this attitude alienates the very owners who have kept the lights on for three decades.
Fumbling the “Caitlin Wave”
The underlying fear in Wiley’s critique is that the players are miscalculating the source of their new power. The massive ratings and attendance boosts are largely tied to Caitlin Clark. Yet, the veterans leading the negotiations—many of whom won’t be in the league in five years—are risking a work stoppage that could kill that momentum.
“Waves crash,” Wiley warned. He cited the 2004 NHL lockout, where the league lost an entire season and saw viewership dip 30% upon return. If the WNBA strikes now, casual fans who tuned in for Clark might just move on to pickleball or volleyball.
The Verdict
Wiley’s advice to the players is blunt: Take the deal. “It feels good to hear ‘15% revenue share, $500k average salary.’ Take it. Bank the win.” He warns that trying to extract every single penny right now, from a league that still isn’t profitable, is a strategy destined to fail.
“The world keeps spinning,” Wiley concluded. “You better keep winning.” If the players don’t heed this warning, they might find that the only thing they win is a cancelled season.
