CHICAGO — As the WNBA celebrates 30 years as a league, one of the biggest changes in the past decade has been the onset of a more free version of free agency. Ever since the changes made for the 2020 collective bargaining agreement, more players than ever have been allowed to choose their own destinations.
And with heightened levels of investment around the league and an additional three destinations to choose from, now even more players have incentives to act on that freedom. Prior salaries and investment weren’t high enough to create a robust market, and players often opted for stability over change. Several All-Stars have spoken on what that growth in free agency meant to their careers.
“We knew in the [2020] CBA … that that might change a little bit,” Nneka Ogwumike, Los Angeles Sparks All-Star and the WNBPA president, said. “We saw a little bit of that each year. It gets crazier and crazier. But I think it’s a testament to the investment in women’s sports. We talked about competitive advantage for so long because there wasn’t really anything that was changing. Now that there’s so much competitive advantage, or what I like to call investment, there’s an opportunity for teams to show out in a big way.”
Gabby Williams started her career with the Chicago Sky in 2018 before playing with the Seattle Storm for four seasons, from 2022 to 2025. During this offseason’s free agency, the Golden State Valkyries made a strong enough case for her to sign there. Now, she’s an All-Star playing for the second-best team in the league.
“It definitely helped my confidence. Realizing good teams wanted me to help them win something. That’s all I want,” Williams said. “Obviously, I went to Golden State too because I felt I could grow the most as a player and as a leader there.
“I kind of have the best of both worlds, where it’s also who wants to contend, as well. So I think it is very easy to stay in your comfort zone. Still have so much love for Seattle. I still say it’s my favorite city in the continental U.S. But it was time. I’m glad that I spread my wings and flew.”
Now playing for the Minnesota Lynx, Natasha Howard started her career with the Indiana Fever in 2014. She’s won three titles: one in her previous stop in Minnesota and two with the Seattle Storm. Getting to move around in her career means she has gotten to play alongside athletes who pushed her and made her better.
“I was able to play with some great legends and great players, and I’m also fortunate that now it means I get to play with young stars like Olivia Miles. I’m getting to see her talent grow, and I’m still a part of the league,” Howard said.
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Cheryl Reeve, the Lynx’s head coach, started in that role in 2010. She said the change in free agency has given teams a chance to truly court players.
“There’s an onus upon the teams to bring it. If you treat the players well, if they find success on the court, you know you have a great opportunity to attract new free agents,” Reeve said. “It doesn’t mean that they’ll always stay because sometimes life takes people in different directions. You can’t help those things. Now they have the opportunity to do that, and they’re not bound by contractual obligations. So I think it’s an exciting time for everybody.”
Nneka Ogwumike’s own free agency this offseason became more eventful when a balloon vendor in Minneapolis inadvertently shared that she was visiting the Lynx before she eventually signed with Los Angeles. Ogwumike joked about “Balloongate,” but also said the discussion of it is a sign of how the league has grown.
“I was like, man, this is amazing. For people to be this tapped into women’s basketball, it’s exactly what we all envisioned,” she said.
