WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert announced Friday that she would retire following the 2026 season after seven years in the role.
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she → announce → role
Engelbert took over in 2019 as the WNBA’s first commissioner, and there is no question the league is substantially bigger, more visible and more valuable than when she arrived.
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she → take → commissioner
The league expanded, secured major media-rights agreements, introduced charter travel and negotiated significant increases in player compensation through a new collective bargaining agreement signed before the 2026 season.
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league → expand → season
NBA Commissioner Adam Silver has called Engelbert’s tenure the most significant period of growth in WNBA history.
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Silver → call → history
But does she deserve credit for these successes?
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she → deserve → successes
I believe the answer is clear.
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answer → believe → ?
A commissioner must also maintain relationships with the players, and those relationships have been objectively tumultuous throughout Engelbert’s tenure.
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relationships → maintain → tenure
She must protect the league’s reputation and its stars, an area in which she has also fallen short.
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she → protect → which
She must manage controversies, something she has repeatedly failed to do.
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she → manage → something
Finally, she must ensure the on-court product is entertaining and credible, which is arguably the strongest case in her favor.
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which → ensure → favor
It goes without saying that Engelbert’s tenure has become increasingly contentious, helping lead to her decision to retire.
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tenure → go → decision
Engelbert’s first major test came almost immediately.
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test → come → ?
The COVID-19 pandemic threatened the 2020 season, but the WNBA successfully created the "Wubble" — a play on words combining WNBA and bubble — in Florida and completed the season.
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WNBA → threaten → season
While it was a success that the season was able to be played, the league also embraced an increasingly prominent social-justice role.
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league → play → role
I truly believe this is where the WNBA became the most politically divisive league in America.
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WNBA → believe → America
Players wore social-justice messages, including support for criminal Jacob Blake and Black Lives Matter, which was led by self-described Marxists, and the league partnered with players on racial-justice initiatives.
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league → wear → initiatives
Engelbert allowed all of this to happen and disenfranchised fans who didn’t care for the overt political messaging when they turned to sports as an escape.
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they → allow → escape
Engelbert also allowed herself and the league to be bullied by radical left-wing activist players who ousted Atlanta Dream owner and Republican Sen. Kelly Loeffler while publicly supporting Raphael Warnock through "Vote Warnock" T-shirts on the court because Loeffler publicly opposed the league’s Black Lives Matter messaging.
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Loeffler → allow → messaging
When the league could have focused on basketball, Engelbert helped the WNBA become completely intertwined with left-wing politics.
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WNBA → focus → politics
One of the most serious controversies of Engelbert's tenure involved former Las Vegas Aces star Dearica Hamby.
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One → involve → Hamby
Hamby alleged that she experienced bullying and mistreatment after revealing that she was pregnant.
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she → allege → bullying
The WNBA investigated the situation and determined that the Aces had violated league rules concerning impermissible benefits during contract negotiations involving Hamby.
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Aces → investigate → Hamby
The league punished Las Vegas by taking away a first-round draft pick and suspending coach Becky Hammon for two games.
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league → punish → games
The controversy raised a larger question about how seriously professional sports organizations protect pregnant athletes.
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organizations → raise → athletes
It also placed Engelbert in the uncomfortable position of having to demonstrate that the league's commitment to women's sports extended to protecting players who become mothers.
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who → place → players
The charter-flight controversy
For years, WNBA teams primarily traveled commercially because charter flights were considered financially impractical under league economics.
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flights → travel → economics
That became increasingly controversial as players complained about exhausting travel schedules and safety concerns.
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players → become → schedules
The issue became particularly embarrassing for the league because teams had previously been punished for using unauthorized charter flights.
Then, in 2024, with the influx of attention, security concerns, and money due to Caitlin Clark, Engelbert announced that the WNBA would introduce a league-wide charter program.
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WNBA → become → program
Engelbert was right that charter flights didn’t make financial sense before Clark arrived, so I can give her some credit.
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I → make → credit
Ultimately, however, Clark deserves the credit for this, not Engelbert.
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Clark → deserve → this
The explosion of Clark's popularity also exposed another problem: the WNBA's handling of physical play and officiating.
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explosion → expose → play
Clark was repeatedly involved in controversial physical incidents, and fans increasingly questioned whether the league was protecting its biggest star.
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league → involve → star
No.
Engelbert was given a gift and she did little to nothing to protect her golden goose.
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she → give → goose
Players and coaches complained about inconsistent officiating, physicality and a lack of accountability.
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Players → complain → accountability
Engelbert eventually announced a committee focused on the "state of the game" and officiating after concerns escalated.
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concerns → announce → game
Without Clark, the WNBA wouldn't reach new heights and new fans.
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WNBA → reach → heights
They needed her for the future of the league and Engelbert was afraid to put her foot down in the wake of immense jealousy, hatred and pettiness from her peers.
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Engelbert → need → peers
The "Pay Us What You Owe Us" movement
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You → pay → Us
While the WNBA was drawing record attention, another controversy was brewing: money.
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controversy → draw → attention
The league had never made a profit.
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league → make → profit
…and 32 more, not listed.
The Aporia
