© 2025 Western New York Public Broadcasting Association

140 Lower Terrace
Buffalo, NY 14202

Toronto Address:
130 Queens Quay E.
Suite 903
Toronto, ON M5A 0P6


Mailing Address:
Horizons Plaza P.O. Box 1263
Buffalo, NY 14240-1263

Buffalo Toronto Public Media | Phone 716-845-7000
BTPM NPR Newsroom | Phone: 716-845-7040
Differing shades of blue wavering throughout the image
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations
grey background. On the left in white text: Stronger together. Better together. In the middle: black and white stock image of people with their backs to the camera putting their arms around each other and standing in a line. BTPM NPR logo on the right.

Drama swirls ahead of Friday's WNBA finals tipoff

Phoenix Mercury forward Natasha Mack (4) guards Las Vegas Aces center A'ja Wilson (22) during the second half of a WNBA basketball game Tuesday, May 14, 2024, in Las Vegas. (John Locher/AP)
/
Phoenix Mercury forward Natasha Mack (4) guards Las Vegas Aces center A'ja Wilson (22) during the second half of a WNBA basketball game Tuesday, May 14, 2024, in Las Vegas. (John Locher/AP)

Game one of the WNBA finals tips off Friday night in Las Vegas, pitting the No. 4-seeded Phoenix Mercury against the No. 2 Las Vegas Aces for the 2025 women’s national basketball championship.

WNBA viewership has skyrocketed in recent years, but with increased popularity comes growing pains. The league players’ union is locked in a heated dispute with the WNBA, as they attempt to negotiate a new collective bargaining agreement. Just this week, there have been calls for WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert to resign.

Here & Now‘s Peter O’Dowd takes a deeper look with The Gist’s Lauren Tuiskula.

This article was originally published on WBUR.org.

Copyright 2025 WBUR

Here & Now Newsroom