As the 2025 WNBA season began to wind down last year, one topic was frequently bandied about: the following year's period of free agency, which would see most of the league available and presumably courting potential new teams.
The ongoing CBA negotiations between the WNBA and the WNBPA have all but completely quashed any visions of mass hysteria that may have been previously imagined. At one point it seemed possible that several teams could see superstars decamp; at this point, it feels much more likely that most players will simply sign one-year contracts with the teams they're already on.
After all, the new CBA is likely to work in favor of such an arrangement. A lot of the league's superstars — A'ja Wilson, Napheesa Coller, Alyssa Thomas, and Breanna Stewart among them — will likely be offered to new maxiumum amount, which makes their decisions to stay with their teams all the eaiser. The league's most recently publicly shared proposal would set a salary cap of $6.2 million (which is up from $1.5 million in 2025).
Two factors could make free agency lively
There are two factors that could toss a wrench in the system: both expansion teams will be looking for players to bring on to their own rosters, and a second tier of players from most teams may be enticed to look elsewhere.
The Toronto Tempo and Portland Fire have yet to hold their expansion drafts, which will presumably be the first order of business once a new CBA is signed. While both teams are likely to make moves during free agency, any attempts to bring in major stars may be thwarted by the terms of the new deal, and how those stars plan out their own careers.
But there's another group of players who may be swayed. While nothing is set in stone yet, it's believed that teams will have the opportunity to pay two players the maximum salary. That's a great deal for those two players — but it also means that the next crop of athletes may leave their teams if it means they can get that maximun salary elsewhere.
For now, most of the projections about free agency are just that: possibilities that might happen. While a good bit can be surmised based on what we know about CBA negotiations, nothing is definite until a deal is signed and the terms are made clear to everyone involved.