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INGLEWOOD, Calif. (AP) — NBA Commissioner Adam Silver has called on the WNBA and its players’ association to increase their urgency to get a labor deal done in time for the new season to begin on schedule in early May.
Silver didn’t propose a firm deadline for a WNBA collective bargaining agreement Saturday in his annual address during NBA All-Star weekend, but he urged both sides to pick up the pace to avoid a work stoppage.
“What I’d love to accomplish is sort of putting pressure on everybody,” Silver said. “I’ve been through so many cycles of collective bargaining, and often things tend to get done at the 11th hour. We are awfully close to the 11th now when it comes to bargaining.”
The WNBA delivered its latest proposal to the players’ union a week ago and offered small increases in revenue sharing along with concessions on housing issues, a person with knowledge of the negotiations told The Associated Press last week. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitive nature of the discussions.
The league and the players are still not close on the main issue of revenue sharing. The players want roughly 30% of the gross revenue, while the league has offered over 70% of net revenue — after expenses that include upgraded facilities, charter flights, five-star hotels, medical services, security and arenas.
Silver has already said WNBA players will be getting a “big increase” in pay from the next CBA.
“I’m encouraged there has been more back and forth over the past few weeks,” Silver said. “I think there’s been more direct engagement from players and team owners. I have not been at the table, but I’m very involved behind the scenes. I want to play whatever role would be most productive in getting a deal done. But again, I think we need to now move toward the next level sense of urgency and not lose momentum in terms of the amazing amount of progress we’ve seen in women’s basketball.”
Silver knows the clock is ticking on the WNBA’s offseason business as well as its regular-season schedule. The negotiations have already delayed the expansion draft for the new franchises in Portland, Oregon and Toronto, and the WNBA draft is scheduled for April 13.
“Training camps are scheduled to open roughly two months from now,” Silver said. “We have to get not one, but two drafts done. We have an expansion draft and a collegiate draft, and then we need to fit in free agency. Plus, whenever we shake hands on a collective bargaining agreement, the lawyers have to go to work and memorialize it.”
Union president Nneka Ogwumike recently said a strike is not imminent, but it remains a possibility. Silver wants both sides to do everything possible to prevent a momentum-draining stoppage of a league coming off a 2025 season that featured record-smashing attendance and television audiences.
“I think it’s unfortunate where we find ourselves right now, both from the team standpoint and from the players,” Silver said. “We’re coming off tremendous momentum in the WNBA. It’s not lost on anyone. I feel like in the last few years in particular, the league has turned a corner in terms of fan interest, commercial success, popularity of players. All arrows are pointing up in terms of the WNBA.”
PHOENIX — Merrill Kelly will start on the mound on Opening Day for the Arizona Diamondbacks next month, manager Torey Lovullo announced on Saturday.
Kelly will get the ball on March 26 against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Chavez Ravine, the 37-year-old’s first career Opening Day start.
The Diamondbacks brought Kelly back this offseason on a two-year deal after having traded him at the deadline to the Texas Rangers.
Kelly had been with Arizona since 2019, and even with the impending return of Zac Gallen after he agreed to a free agent contract on Friday, Kelly will be given the opportunity to kick off the season.
Kelly was eager to come back to Arizona, where he went to Desert Mountain High School, Arizona State, where he lives with his family and has extended family. The D-backs gave him a shot at the major leagues after he had been pitching in South Korea, and he rewarded that trust by becoming a mainstay in the starting rotation over seven seasons.
“Arizona’s home, it’s always gonna be home,” Kelly said after the signing in December. “I didn’t really want to go anywhere else.”
Last year, Kelly made 32 starts with a 3.52 ERA between Arizona and Texas. He owns a 3.47 ERA since the start of 2022.
Kelly’s teammates found out about the reunion at outfielder Alek Thomas’ wedding in Mexico this offseason, which created a quite a stir.
“I overheard him talking about something, and I was like, ‘Did I just hear that right? And he was like, ‘You heard that right,'” pitcher Ryne Nelson said on Tuesday. “Just gave him a big hug. He’s a really good guy to have around with all his knowledge and eagerness to share it with everybody, which I think is a big attribute.”
The Diamondbacks wasted no time with this decision after the Gallen versus Corbin Burnes debate dragged on last spring.
Gallen had started the previous three Opening Day games for the Diamondbacks from 2023-25. Randy Johnson has the club record with six Opening Day starts, followed by Brand Webb’s four.
The Diamondbacks start the year with three games in Los Angeles before returning home for three games against the Detroit Tigers and four versus the Atlanta Braves.
The Arizona Cardinals continue to fill out their coaching staff following the hire of head coach Mike LaFleur this offseason.
Arizona’s coordinators appear set, with defensive coordinator Nick Rallis running it back with the team on top of offensive coordinator Nathaniel Hackett and special teams coordinator Michael Ghobrial joining the ranks.
Now, it’s on to rounding out the rest of the coaching staff.
Here’s a running list of the coaches on LaFleur’s staff so far:
Offensive coordinator — Nathaniel Hackett
Hackett takes over for the departed Drew Petzing, who is now the OC for the Detroit Lions.
Hackett served as the Packers OC for three seasons (2019-21) under Matt LaFleur, Mike’s brother and Green Bay’s head coach. Hackett was also on the Packers’ staff last year as a defensive analyst.
The new Cardinals OC brings with him plenty of experience from multiple NFL stops. He will not call plays in Arizona, however. That duty falls to his head coach.
Defensive coordinator — Nick Rallis
Rallis gets another run in Arizona following three seasons under former head coach Jonathan Gannon.
He’s got a lot to prove in his return after his unit gave up the sixth-most yards (357.7) and fourth-most points (28.7) per game last season.
Special teams coordinator — Michael Ghobrial
Ghobrial spent the past two seasons as the New York Giants’ special teams coordinator.
He got his NFL start with the Lions through the Bill Walsh Diversity Coaching Fellowship in 2017.
Ghobrial worked alongside LaFleur with the New York Jets as the assistant special teams coordinator from 2021-22.
He takes over for Jeff Rodgers, who is now in Buffalo in the same capacity.
Offensive line coach — Justin Frye
Frye re-ups with the Cardinals after spending last year with the franchise.
It was a rough first go for Frye, whose offensive line took a noticeable step back from the two years prior.
He’s got a good connection with Paris Johnson Jr. and Jon Gaines II from their college days. There are going to be a lot of eyes on his position group after missing the mark in 2025.
Assistant offensive line coach — Chris Cook
Cook is another familiar face running it back with the Cardinals after spending the past three seasons in Arizona.
Quarterbacks coach — Matt Schaub
Schaub comes over with plenty of NFL playing experience behind 16 seasons and four franchises.
The same can’t be said about his prior coaching experience, though. His lone coaching stop was as a football analyst with the Atlanta Falcons in 2023.
Schaub as a player crossed paths with LaFleur in Atlanta in 2016. LaFleur served as an offensive assistant during their one season together.
Wide receivers coach — Tony Sorrentino
Sorrentino comes aboard after spending the past four seasons with the Minnesota Vikings as an assistant wide receivers coach. He worked closely with Justin Jefferson and Jordan Addison.
The Cardinals WRs coach worked with Hackett for a season in Jacksonville (2015). Sorrentino served as an assistant WRs coach and offensive quality control. Hackett was the team’s QBs coach during their time together.
Tight ends coach — Jake Moreland
Moreland served as a tight ends coach for both the Denver Broncos (2022) and Houston Texans (2023-25) before linking up with the Cardinals this offseason.
He also worked under LaFleur previously as an assistant OL coach with the Jets in 2021.
Running backs coach — Matt Merritt
Merritt is coming off two seasons with the Miami Hurricanes as their running backs coach.
This marks his first taste of NFL coaching.
Chris Paul, who played for the Phoenix Suns from 2020-23 and led them to the 2021 NBA Finals, announced his retirement Friday after he was waived by the Toronto Raptors.
The 40-year-old Paul was playing for the Los Angeles Clippers this season, his 21st in the NBA, and he strongly hinted in November that it would be his last.
He was sent home by the Clippers in December and saw his contract get included in a three-team deadline deal in February that also included the Brooklyn Nets.
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The 12-time All-Star and two-time Olympic gold medalist has earned four All-NBA first team selections, and he ranks second in NBA history with 12,552 assists. He was the first player to score at least 20,000 points while recording at least 10,000 assists.
He became arguably the most accomplished player in Clippers franchise history while leading the team to six winning seasons from 2011-17, including the Clippers’ first two Pacific Division titles and three playoff series victories. Paul returned to Los Angeles as a free agent last July, rejoining a franchise where he is loved by fans while having an outside chance to contend for his first championship alongside Kawhi Leonard and James Harden.
Paul hasn’t spoken to reporters since he strongly hinted at retirement while the Clippers were back in his native North Carolina. But he acknowledged a video retrospective of his career played by the Clippers during a timeout at Intuit Dome last week. The video ended with “Congratulations, Point God” on the screen.
Paul couldn’t really be blamed for the Clippers’ profound struggles this season because he hadn’t played much.
He averaged 2.6 points and 3.3 assists while playing just 14.3 minutes per game — all career lows — and he didn’t play at all in five straight games in mid-November.
Paul had eight points and three assists while playing 15 minutes against the Heat in what turned out to be his final game with the team — a game in which Harden and other starters were effectively benched, in the latest sign of discord for coach Tyronn Lue’s team.
The Clippers are on a five-game skid, and they’re tied with Sacramento for the second-worst record in the Western Conference heading into Wednesday’s games. Leonard has been limited to 10 games by injuries, and they’ve already lost guard Bradley Beal to season-ending hip surgery.
The Clippers’ streak of 14 consecutive winning seasons is the longest active streak in the NBA, but owner Steve Ballmer’s club has yet to show signs of contention this season — and now they’re going forward without a historically talented point guard and franchise favorite.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
