Las Vegas Aces head coach and six-time WNBA All-Star Becky Hammon said it may be time for a change in WNBA leadership.
In an interview with CNBC Sports a month after winning his third NBA championship as the Aces, Hammon spoke of Commissioner Cathy Engelbert’s “rocky relationship” with many WNBA players, calling for Engelbert’s resignation.
“They’ll probably look for a change in leadership. I think it’s too fractured at this point,” Hammon said.
In late September, Minnesota Lynx star Napheesa Collier publicly criticized Engelbert’s leadership, saying the commissioner lacked empathy for players regarding salary issues and the ongoing officiating issue.
Collier recounted comments Engelbert reportedly made during a February meeting. Those comments sparked widespread backlash and prompted several other players to voice their concerns to the commissioner.
Hammon suggested the situation may no longer be salvageable.
“I don’t know if she’ll ever regret it and retract and get any momentum back from that conversation,” Hammon said.
“One of the things (the league) has always maintained is that when players speak, people need to sit and listen,” Hammon said. “I think (Engelbert) is sitting and listening right now.”
The WNBA declined to comment, but CNBC pointed to Engelbert’s business accomplishments.
Engelbert took the helm of the league in 2019 after more than 30 years at Deloitte.
During her tenure as WNBA commissioner, she led the league through the coronavirus pandemic and drove record financial, attendance and viewership growth, according to the league. She also helped negotiate the 2020 collective bargaining agreement and media rights agreement that increased the league’s media revenue from $60 million a year to $200 million a year.
She also oversaw the league’s expansion, adding six new teams in recent years. CNBC previously reported that the newest franchise teams in Cleveland, Detroit and Philadelphia each paid record $250 million expansion fees.
In 2024, Engelbert introduced league-wide charter flights and upgraded team accommodations to five-star hotels, another major step in the league’s professionalization.
But players claim their salaries are low compared to NBA players and the league’s growing popularity.
In an Oct. 3 press conference ahead of Game 1 of the WNBA Finals, Engelbert acknowledged criticism over his relationship with players and vowed to make changes.
“If the players don’t feel valued and valued by the league, then I have to try harder,” Engelbert said.
The WNBA and Women’s National Basketball Players Association continue to negotiate a new collective bargaining agreement ahead of a Nov. 30 deadline.
Hammon, a former WNBA All-Star, made history as the first woman to serve as an acting NBA head coach in 2020 when she served as an assistant coach to then-San Antonio Spurs coach Gregg Popovich.
In 2021, the WNBA’s Las Vegas Aces announced that Hammon will be their head coach. She led the team to three championships in the past four years and will be inducted into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame in 2023.
