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Tension at the Top: An important week for the commissioner There is no bigger story heading into All-Star weekend than commissioner Cathy Engelbert’s job security.Before a new collective bargaining agreement was ever reached, Engelbert already appeared to be in the hot seat when players — most notably Minnesota Lynx star Napheesa Collier — began calling out the commissioner’s poor leadership. Of course, both sides were in the heat of negotiations, so let’s chalk that up to business tactics. But since the new CBA was ratified, Engelbert has found herself in the middle of even more controversy. What should be a season marked by memorable celebrations of the league’s 30th year has been marred by poor officiating, harassment issues and Engelbert’s seeming inability to be proactive in addressing any of it.
This all came to a head last week after a report from the Sports Business Journal detailed NBA commissioner Adam Silver’s alleged involvement in the WNBA’s decision to suspend Mercury forward Alyssa Thomas following the now-infamous flagrant foul on Indiana Fever guard Caitlin Clark.
