With the 2026 WNBA season slated to begin in just over two months, It’s getting to crunch time for collective bargaining agreement negotiations between the WNBA and the players’ union.
And the WNBA has set a deadline. Sources with knowledge of the situation confirmed to IndyStar that the league told the WNBPA in a virtual meeting on Monday that the two sides need to have a CBA term sheet by March 10 to avoid the 2026 schedule being impacted.
A term sheet is non-binding, but it typically outlines agreed-upon terms between two sides in a negotiation. The league and players’ union agreeing to a term sheet would likely mean they have agreed upon all major portions of a collective bargaining agreement, including salaries and revenue sharing, housing and roster spots.
The deadline set by the league is just under two months before the season is supposed to begin, May 8. Between a new CBA and the beginning of the season, the WNBA needs to execute an expansion draft for the Toronto Tempo and Portland Fire, hold a massive free agency period as all but two veteran players are free agents this offseason, and have the rookie draft (which is slated for April 13).
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Training camp is scheduled to open on April 19 for all teams, and the season opens May 8. The Indiana Fever have two preseason games scheduled — at New York on April 25 and vs Dallas on April 30 — before opening the season against Dallas on May 9.
So, how would a delayed season affect the Indiana Fever?
On the business side, it would affect the Fever’s bottom line if the season is delayed and games are ultimately affected. The WNBA has not specified whether canceled games in the case of a delayed season would be rescheduled.
Tickets have already been sold for Fever games at Gainbridge Fieldhouse; an Indiana spokesperson told IndyStar on Tuesday that they would look into what would happen to those tickets in the case of a game cancellation.
On the operations side, it is giving the Fever’s front office less and less time to plan, and the coaching staff less time to work with potential new players before the season begins.
The Fever, hypothetically, are sitting in a good place when it comes to the two-team expansion draft, assuming the rules don’t drastically change. The last time the league held a multi-team draft, it allowed teams to protect five players.
Indiana has just three players under contract in 2026: Aliyah Boston, Caitlin Clark and Makayla Timpson. Indiana also has the right of first refusal for Lexie Hull, who is a restricted free agent, the ability to core Kelsey Mitchell again (assuming the core rules don’t change), the rights to reserved free agent Chloe Bibby, and the rights to Kristy Wallace, who suspended her contract in 2025 for personal reasons.
The Fever could easily protect Boston, Clark, Timpson, Hull, and Mitchell, keeping their main core intact. The Tempo and Fire would then likely pick between Wallace or Bibby, neither of whom had a strong impact on the Fever in their seasons in Indiana.
Still, Indiana cannot definitively know the state of its roster for the expansion draft or free agency until the CBA is agreed upon and the expansion draft rules are set.
As the league and the players’ union are in a state of status quo, Indiana’s coaches are able to work with their players — including outgoing free agents — in the offseason. A delay in CBA negotiations doesn’t necessarily affect the coaches’ ability to work with free agents they already have relationships with, like Mitchell or Hull.
Coach Stephanie White, assistants Briann January, Karima Christmas-Kelly, Austin Kelly, and player development coach Rob Dosier all went to Miami last week for workouts with Mitchell, Hull, Boston, and Timpson, all of whom are playing in Unrivaled this offseason, and Clark.
A delay in these negotiations does, however, affect working with other players they are hoping to sign in the offseason, as free agents typically don’t work with new coaches until a contract is signed. Free agency typically begins in February, so players signing to new teams typically have months to work with their new coaches and get acquainted before official training camp starts.
Indiana’s front office also won’t definitively know what kinds of players it will need from the rookie draft until it goes through free agency. Typically, there are a couple months between the top free agency period and the rookie draft, allowing front offices to assess potential holes in the roster, but the Fever, along with every team in the league, will have to work on a condensed schedule this year.
Chloe Peterson is the Indiana Fever beat reporter for IndyStar. Reach her at capeterson@gannett.com or follow her on X at @chloepeterson67.
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This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: How could delayed or shortened season affect Indiana Fever? WNBA sets negotiation deadline
Reporting by Chloe Peterson, Indianapolis Star / Indianapolis Star
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
