WNBA Fans Chant “Pay The Players” During Unrivaled Semifinals Amid Stalled CBA Talks [VIDEO]

The WNBA fans at the Barclays Center gave the Unrivaled league semifinalists a grand welcome; over 18,000 fans filled the arena. Paige Bueckers had predicted a huge crowd for the mega fixtures as she prepared for the clash against the Mist BC, calling it a lifetime experience.

Moreover, two of the sides had Brooklyn’s own superstars – Natasha Cloud and Breanna Stewart, which adds excitement to the games. But fans at the arena didn’t just show their support for women’s basketball; they came out and backed the WNBA stars who are currently in discussion with the league over new CBA Terms.

WNBA Fans Chant ‘Pay The Players’ Amid Unrivaled Semifinals

Amid the Unrivaled season, Cameron Brink urged fans to support WNBA players’ demands in ongoing CBA talks, as the delay has caused unrest among fans and players.

Fans on social media showed their support by questioning the salary cap rule in the CBA proposal. Also, fans in the Barclays Center stood up for the players’ demands, and ‘Pay the Players’ chants filled the arena.

Fans are chanting “Pay the players” during @Unrivaledwbb semi-finals 👀

Unrivaled is changing the game. (via @kareemcopeland)pic.twitter.com/w6ge2oIe8b

— Legion Hoops (@LegionHoops) March 3, 2026

Interestingly, WNBA fans already backed players and publicly showed their support during the All-Star game and the WNBA Finals trophy presentation.

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The league, looking to wrap up the discussions before March 10, already handed out its proposal. The league is also looking to tweak the changes in its earlier offers to make the proposals more desirable and yet in line with its interests. Breanna Stewart mentioned that the league also handed out a new offer two days after the union presented its counterproposal.

WNBA Handing Out New Proposal

According to the Updates, there are some improvements to the previous offer: any player on a rookie contract who was first- or second-team All-WNBA is now eligible for a max contract in their fourth year. They would not be eligible for a franchise tag designation after that extension.

Also, the league increases its salary cap limit to $5.75 million in the first year and gradually raises it to $8.5 million by the sixth year of the agreement. This is nearly three times the value of the current cap values.

Although these are not the exact terms the PA would be hoping to receive, they could still collaborate with the league to work on the deal within a one-week period.