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WOMEN'S NATIONAL BASKETBALL ASSOCIATION MEDIA CONFERENCEMarch 7, 2014Laurel RichieTHE MODERATOR: Thank you very much for joining the call this afternoon. We're going to get started right away with opening remarks from WNBA president Laurel Richie and then open the floor to questions. PRESIDENT RICHIE: Good evening, everyone. Thank you very much for joining. This is an exciting day for us, reaching an agreement with the players and the union. We're feeling very excited about the fact that we entered into this process clearly both having items and elements of the new CBA that were important to us. I think coming out of it, things that were very important to the players are part of this agreement and things that are very important to us are part of the agreement. I think that speaks well of the process and I think it leaves both sides very excited about the 2014 season and getting that started knowing that we've worked hard to look at the agreement with an eye toward putting the most competitive game on the court and creating an experience that is good for our fans and an environment that's terrific for our partners. I'll open it up for any questions that you may have. Q. Are there any increases in salaries with the new CBA? Will the No.1 pick get more money than last year? PRESIDENT RICHIE: So increases in? Q. Salaries. PRESIDENT RICHIE: Our salary cap, there will be modest increases in the salary cap throughout the term of the agreement. I'm going to have to come back to you on the No.1 pick. I will get that information for you. Q. The 50,000 that's divided among the teams, is it each player or among the team, for a player that wants to take a break and not go overseas? PRESIDENT RICHIE: One of the elements I'm excited about is the time‑off bonus. That is $50,000 per team, per year. That could be with one player, that could be with multiple players. The only restriction or guideline is that the player agrees to limit their overseas play from zero to 90 days. We think that's a great way, from our standpoint, to acknowledge that we know there is a market for players going overseas, and we really wanted to offer an incentive for players to stay stateside or limit their overseas play during our off‑season. Q. What improvements are there for working moms in the league? What do you provide now that's helpful? PRESIDENT RICHIE: Our benefit program for working mothers, our benefits package accommodates maternity leave and benefits for mom during her pregnancy. That is a place where we have maintained our policies, which from the very beginning we were mindful that was something we wanted to offer, given that we are the Women's National Basketball Association. Q. Any child care or is that on their own? PRESIDENT RICHIE: I'd have to come back to you on that. Q. You mentioned that both sides got something that was valued to them. Could you talk about what was maybe the most important thing for the league. PRESIDENT RICHIE: I think we were very mindful of the fact that we are just entering into our 18th season, coming off of a terrific 2013 season. We are mindful that we are still in development. So paying attention to the financial aspects of the deal and of the agreement were important to us. The notion of really trying to find a way to both recognize the overseas play but offer an incentive to players to limit their overseas play was very important to our ownership group. For us, that was a very important point, and we were glad we were able to reach agreement in that area. Q. With the 12th player, were there any salary cap considerations that had to be taken into account or other limiting factors? That obviously increases costs for the teams. PRESIDENT RICHIE: A 12th player, it is not just the salary, it is also the benefits, housing, a whole host of other things. We knew going in that that was very important to players, so we wanted to see if through the process we could find a way to create the possibility of a 12th player. We're happy that we were able to do that. Q. Last year, there were emergency player rules. Is there going to be a change to the emergency rule? PRESIDENT RICHIE: Again, let me come back to you on exactly the mechanics of that. Q. When exactly is free agency going to begin? Is there going to be a moratorium? PRESIDENT RICHIE: Free agency for us will begin on Monday, which is why we very much appreciate you guys coming together on a Friday afternoon. Q. Just to be sure we're all talking about the same thing, when you're referring to the salary cap going up slightly over the course of the year, are you talking about salary cap in terms of the total amount a given team can pay to all of its players collectively or to the top salary an individual can receive? PRESIDENT RICHIE: This is a salary for the team cap. Q. The top salaries for any given player, has that gone up at all under the new agreement? PRESIDENT RICHIE: There is a provision for an increase in individual players, yes. Q. How much? Will that information be forthcoming? PRESIDENT RICHIE: That will be forthcoming. Q. I understand there was at least some discussion of having penalties for players who were coming back late from their overseas commitment. Is that the case? If so, does that apply only to players who are playing for professional teams or also to players who are absent because of commitments to their national teams? PRESIDENT RICHIE: As this unfolds, there will be penalties for missing games, whether that's a regular‑season game or a playoff game, not this year but starting next year for missing training camp. There's some repercussions for that. That is for any reason, whether that is playing for a team overseas or leaving in the middle of the season for playing with a national team. Q. Was there any negotiation with FIBA over that? I understand that FIBA requires all players to answer the calls of the national teams? PRESIDENT RICHIE: The CBA is really the discussion of the agreement between our union, our players, our league, and our owners. Q. With the addition of the 12th player, are you bringing back the injured, disabled list? PRESIDENT RICHIE: We are not. Q. It seems like you with the logistics are unclear. Will the CBA be posted online for media to access? Is it going to be made public, the whole agreement? PRESIDENT RICHIE: I don't know. I'm sorry to say I don't know. I would want to check with our team on that. Q. Especially with the one question asked about the international play, just to understand, like Liz Cambage, she left mid‑season. To use her as an example, a player like that would be penalized for doing so? PRESIDENT RICHIE: I'm sorry, I have a bad connection. Can you say that again? Q. Liz Cambage, just to use her as an example, when she left, she would be penalized for doing so next year? PRESIDENT RICHIE: Yes, for a player who in the middle of our season misses a game. Q. With the 12th player, with the addition of that, there's per diem, housing, things like that, with the addition of this, I've heard figures added up to about $100,00 total when you look at all the teams. Is that kind of an accurate ballpark for what that adds to a salary cap? PRESIDENT RICHIE: No, actually I'm not going to go into sort of the amount of everything. We do have modest increases in our per diems. As I said, there are increases in the salary cap. We have added the opportunity to add a 12th player to the roster. All of these are elements that are part of the new agreement. Q. You're adding a 12th person, just like a mom adding another baby. Is kind of that person, that player‑‑ PRESIDENT RICHIE: So your question is the all‑in cost of adding a 12th player to a team? Q. Yes. PRESIDENT RICHIE: Yes, I apologize. That is the ballpark. Q. Is there a date for the draft yet? Did I miss that? PRESIDENT RICHIE: We should have that next week. Q. You did answer as far as the free agency begins on Monday, but is there a time period for the teams to negotiate their core and restrict a player before going into the open free agency or is it everybody at the same time kind of thing? PRESIDENT RICHIE: It will be everyone at the same time, given where we are sort of in terms of the season approaching. Q. When you were talking with owners and the $50,000 to spend on players who stay here, did you get a sense from the owners how they really wanted to distribute that type of thing? I understand you don't have to, like in the past, be here for community service. Did you get a generalization how they would like to have used that money? Is there a generalization of how they were discussing wanting to spend that money on the players? PRESIDENT RICHIE: The time‑off bonus? Q. Yes. PRESIDENT RICHIE: I think we wanted to provide our teams with as much flexibility on that so that they could think about their market, their players, their team. So, no, we've created the framework, and left the specifics of that up to the teams. Q. As far as the time‑off bonus, was it the owners that really pushed for that or the player side? Who is responsible for that funding? Is it the actual teams or the league? PRESIDENT RICHIE: I think the genesis of the time‑off bonus was really born out of our shared understanding of the realities of today where players play in our league, and we know that in the off‑season they play in other areas. So I think it was a combination of all of us thinking about as we move and march forward, is there an opportunity to begin to offer an incentive to players to reduce the time that they play overseas, thinking that that would be good for players and it would be good for the league. I think it was really marrying and thinking about what's in our collective best interest. Q. Is the league providing that $50,000 or is it each team individually? PRESIDENT RICHIE: That is the team. THE MODERATOR: Thank you very much, Laurel, and to our media members, thank you for joining. We thank you for taking the time to call in. PRESIDENT RICHIE: Thank you all. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports |
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