The 2026 season of the WNBA is already shaping up to be a fascinating one — and some of the reasons why have little to do with what might or might not happen on the court.
Per reporting from the Sports Business Journal, one issue that's sneaking up on a handful of teams has to do with the fact that only five teams in the league are completely independent from the NBA. That list includes the Dallas Wings, Chicago Sky, Las Vegas Aces, Seattle Storm, and Atlanta Dream. All five ownership groups are not tied to affiliate NBA teams in their cities, a fact that is both a blessing, and it seems, a curse.
The topic of NBA affiliates and ownership has come up in the wake of the sale of the Connecticut Sun to an ownership group in Houston. The Texas group plans to resurrect the Houston Comets, one of the original WNBA franchise teams, and also own the Rockets. That means that the Comets will be able to come into the WNBA potentially ahead of some preexisting teams in terms of resources — and that might be a problem.
“Well, if it walks like a duck and, what is it, quacks like a duck?” Sky CEO and President Adam Fox told the SBJ. “There’s a lot to it. So I don’t know if it’s a trend. I don’t know if it’s a coincidence. I don’t want to pretend to be — here’s a reference: a Kreskin — to be able to know what it is. But I read the tea leaves just like everybody else.”
In other words, the teams that don't have the backing of the NBA (financially or otherwise), will be forced to "punch above our weight class," he added. And that's where things get especially difficult.
While several of the teams listed made significant gains during free ageny this season, a lot of newcomers only signed one-year deals with their respective teams. The Sky and Wings have announced plans to build state-of-the-art training facilities but have run into problems while attempting to do so, and it's not too difficult to understand how and why having NBA owners in their corner could change that reality.
For example, the Golden State Valkyries — who are owned by Joe Lacob, the same guy who owns the Golden State Warriors — entered the WNBA with everything a team could possibly need. That was made possible in part due to the amount of money that Lacob was able to invest.
It's worth noting that at least one WNBA newcomer might be changing things. The Portland Fire will make their debut this season and are not directly affiliiated with the Portland Trail Blazers. The Fire have made a lot of big promises when it comes to how players will be taken care of, and the 2026 season will give owners Lisa Blathal Marage and Alex Blathal the opportunity to buck what is otherwise a concerning trend.
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