WNBA commissioner denies alleged statement saying Caitlin Clark should be 'grateful' to league for success
WNBA commissioner calls Clark 'transformational player' while addressing player allegations
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert addressed a conversation revealed by player Napheesa Collier, who alleged Engelbert said "[Caitlin Clark] should be grateful she makes $16 million off the court because without the platform that the WNBA gives her, she wouldn't make anything."
Engelbert said at a press conference Friday she did not make those comments.
"Obviously, I did not make those comments. Caitlin has been a transformational player in this league. She's been a great representative of the game. She’s brought in tens of millions of new fans to the game," Engelbert said.
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WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert speaks during a news conference before the WNBA All-Star Game July 19, 2025, in Indianapolis. (Michael Conroy/AP Photo)
Collier also alleged that Engelbert said, "Players should be on their knees, thanking their lucky stars for the media rights deal that I got them."
Engelbert addressed those alleged comments as well, claiming there have been a lot of "inaccuracies" reported in the media, but she did not explicitly deny making those comments as she did with the alleged Clark comments.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"There's a lot of innacuracy out there through social media and all this reporting," Engelbert said. "A lot of reporting, a lot of innacuracy about what I say, what I didn't say."
LYNX'S NAPHEESA COLLIER RAILS AGAINST WNBA LEADERSHIP, CALLS FOR OFFICIATING CHANGES
Indiana Fever guard Caitlin Clark plays against the Dallas Wings in Indianapolis Sept. 15, 2024. (Michael Conroy, File/AP Photo)
Engelbert later said, "I'm disheartened. I'm a human too. I have a family. I have two kids who are devastated by these comments. So, all I say is that it's obviously been a tough week, and I just think there's a lot of innacuracy out there."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Still, Engelbert acknowledged that if players don't feel "appreciated" then she has to do better.
"I was disheartened to hear that some players feel the league and that I personally do not care about them or listen to them," Engelbert said before Game 1 of the WNBA Finals Friday night.
"If the players in the ‘W’ don’t feel appreciated and value from the league, we have to do better, and I have to do better."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The WNBA and its players' union, the WNBPA, are in negotiations for a new collective bargaining agreement.
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Caitlin Clark poses with WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert after she is selected as the No. 1 overall pick by the Indiana Fever in the 2024 WNBA Draft at Brooklyn Academy of Music in Brooklyn, N.Y., April 15, 2024. (Brad Penner/USA Today Sports)
The players’ association and the WNBA agreed to an eight-year agreement in 2020, but last year the WNBPA voted to opt out of the agreement early.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The current agreement is due to expire Oct. 31.
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