With the Oct. 31 deadline for the new WNBA collective bargaining agreement rapidly approaching, tension is high between the league’s players and its commissioner, Cathy Engelbert. But on Monday, NBA commissioner Adam Silver expressed his confidence that the league and its players will be able to bridge the divide and reach a deal.

“Cathy Engelbert has presided over historic growth in the league but there’s no question that there’s issues that we need to address with our players, not just economic,” Silver said during a press conference on Monday, via the Associated Press. “There’s relationship issues as well. I’m confident we can fix those over time and this league can continue to be on the rocket trajectory that it’s on right now.”

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The relationship between Engelbert and the players, which has been strained all season, hit a boiling point last week when Napheesa Collier called out WNBA leadership during a scathing end-of-season press conference. Engelbert responded to Collier’s comments in a press conference on Friday, largely dismissing them but admitting she needed to “do better.”

At the time, Engelbert said that she had messaged with Collier and that she planned to meet with her face-to-face. But Collier, who had cited the league’s lack of accountability as one of her issues, canceled the meeting after Engelbert’s press conference reportedly “pushed the relationship beyond repair.”

All of this is happening during the start of the 2025 WNBA Finals, which Silver says have been overshadowed by both the negotiations and the ongoing conflict.

“There’s no question that the WNBA is going through growing pains and it’s unfortunate that it’s coming just as their most important games and their finals are on right now,” Silver said, via the AP. “We’ve had two fantastic games so far and we want to celebrate the game at the moment, and then we’ve got to sit down with the players and negotiate a new collective bargaining agreement.”

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Collier’s statement drew quick support from players around the league, and beyond. The sentiment seemed to echo many of the players’ frustrations, especially as the two sides have reached a stalemate in CBA discussions. On Wednesday, Indiana Fever star Caitlin Clark used the moment to call the upcoming CBA negotiations “the biggest moment in WNBA history.”

As Silver pointed out, the WNBA’s recent growth has been historic: Franchises have grown exponentially in value over the past few years, with teams paying hundreds of millions of dollars in expansion fees. But players’ salaries have not reflected that growth, leading to one of the primary sticking points in the CBA discussions: revenue sharing.

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Under the current CBA, WNBA players receive a 9% share of the league’s revenue — compared to around 50% for the NBA — but would not receive additional shares until the WNBA’s revenue hits certain benchmarks, per ESPN. But players have reportedly not been given hard data to prove that those numbers haven’t been met.

The NBA is a parent company of the WNBA. As a result, Silver has been involved in CBA negotiations. Though Engelbert said Friday that an extension might be on the table if negotiations don’t resolve in time, Silver seemed confident that the two sides would come to an agreement.

“We will get a deal done with the players,” Silver said, via the AP. “Lots of work left to be done, but we’ll of course get a new collective bargaining agreement.”