Cathy Engelbert is stepping down as WNBA commissioner at the end of the year, wrapping up her seven-year run as the league’s first-ever commissioner. The news broke Friday, and it means a new era is coming for a league that’s seen massive changes under her watch.
Major League Moves and Record Growth
When Engelbert took over in 2019, NBA commissioner Adam Silver made it clear they wanted to elevate the WNBA’s top role from a president to a full-on commissioner. Silver said they aimed to “signal to the broadest possible audience that the WNBA is a major league and that she has the same status as the heads of other U.S.-based sports leagues.” He called Engelbert a “world-class business leader with a deep connection to women’s basketball,” perfect for leading the WNBA’s next growth phase, bringing “more than 30 years of business and operational experience, including revenue generation, sharp entrepreneurial instincts and proven management abilities.” And she delivered! Under her leadership, the league saw “tremendous growth.” We’re talking multiple collective bargaining agreements, including one that just this year boosted the salary cap to $7 million, bringing the first million-dollar salaries in league history. Plus, we got the first comprehensive revenue-sharing model in women’s professional sports ever. Engelbert also pushed an expansion drive that’s already brought us the Golden State Valkyries, Portland Fire, and Toronto Tempo, with three more teams coming by 2030 in Cleveland, Detroit, and Philadelphia. That means a record 18 teams for the WNBA. That’s big, right?
When Success Isn’t Enough: The Player Rift
Here’s the kicker though: all that business success? It got overshadowed by some serious issues, mainly her “poor relationship with the players” and “complaints about how she and the league handled off-court controversies and distractions.” You heard Minnesota Lynx star Napheesa Collier last year, right? She didn’t hold back: “We have the best players in the world. We have the best fans in the world, but right now we have the worst leadership in the world.” Ouch. Lindsay Gibbs from CBS Sports nailed it too, saying “Cathy Engelbert is leaving the WNBA much better than she found it, but it was definitely time to go.” Look, a commissioner is always gonna have some friction with players, they answer to the owners and the NBA. But when that relationship gets “as adversarial as it did with Engelbert in recent years,” that’s not good for anyone.
Who Steps Up to Bridge the Gap?
So, the challenge for the next commissioner is massive: keep that business growth engine running strong, but also somehow build a much better rapport with the players. Who’s it gonna be? Right now, it’s totally unclear. Engelbert told the Associated Press she’s been working on a succession plan for years, with both internal and external candidates in the mix. She’s out at the end of the year, so the clock is ticking for the WNBA to find someone who can lead a record-setting league while also mending those crucial player relationships. The stakes couldn’t be higher for the future of women’s pro basketball.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by CBS Sports.
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