CHICAGO — WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert was prepared as she took the podium for her annual press conference ahead of the All-Star game.She emphasized the league’s historic growth, announced a replay center for next season and addressed the concerns over player safety amid their testimonies of online abuse and harassment. But when it came to her future as commissioner, she was indirect.“I am so blessed to be at the helm of this league during this incredible hypergrowth,” Engelbert said when asked if she expects to be commissioner at the start of next season.Though she did not commit to an answer about her future, she detailed the ways she’s loved serving as commissioner, the values the WNBA stands for and pride over where the league is headed. She did, however, acknowledge where she needs to be better and that’s in her communication with the league’s biggest stakeholders — the players.“It’s absolutely something I’ve been talking with players about how much they want to hear from us,” Engelbert said.“We have to be better at it. It’s something if a player is getting honored or a player gets hurt or something, I try to reach out to them. We need to be better at it. There’s no doubt. I need to be better. Everybody needs to be better at communication all the time.”The tension between players and Engelbert seemed to boil over last year amidst negotiations for a new collective bargaining agreement. Whether their relationship has improved in the roughly four months since both sides reached an agreement and avoided delaying the 2026 season depends on who you ask.Who's responsible for the WNBA's PR problem?Engelbert acknowledged the “contentious” nature of labor negotiations and how that played a role in her relationship with players last year, but said she now feels they are in a “really good place.”