There are 50 days until tip-off of the 2026 WNBA season and the Toronto Tempo have yet to sign a single player.
After over a week of extensive meetings totalling more than 100 hours, and five-plus months of discussions before that, the WNBA has a new record-breaking CBA agreed to in principle and the Tempo’s inaugural season can finally start taking shape.
Now, it’s all about speed. As we barrel towards opening night on May 8, there’s much to get done.
The first step comes in the next few days when a term sheet detailing the verbal CBA agreement is released.
Then, a race to build teams, confirm rosters, draft college players and ready for the ball to drop.
It was a marathon negotiation, but now it’s time for a hurdle-y sprint to tip off.
Here’s a look at all that needs to happen before the Tempo take the floor.
Keep expansion draft expectations low
The expansion draft is the Tempo’s first opportunity to build a roster. After months of delay, there’s plenty of anticipation around who will be the first players brought across the border.
With two teams entering the league in the same season, the expansion draft will be more complicated than last year’s. The Tempo must consider what the Portland Fire are looking for on top of their own roster-building plans.
Since the draft is expected to take a similar form to the one the Golden State Valkyries held last year, it’s important to manage expectations. The Valkyries were only allowed one unrestricted free agent pick across the entire draft and used it on Monique Billings, their selection from the Phoenix Mercury. Following the draft, the seven-year veteran was quickly signed to a one-year deal. It won’t be this straightforward for the Tempo.
Given 80 per cent of the league are free agents, 77 of which are unrestricted, the Tempo will have fewer options available and may choose not to select a player from each team. Last year, the Valkyries didn’t select a player from the Seattle Storm and left the draft with just 11 roster spots filled. For Toronto, this number will likely be even less.
Each team is also expected to protect five players ahead of the draft, further diminishing the available options.
The draft is expected to take place on April 6, immediately following the Women’s NCAA Final on April 5. WNBA front offices will be stretched to manage college scouting and the expansion draft, while also preparing for an unprecedented free agency period.
Frenzy is an understatement
The players have been preparing for this free agency period for a couple of years now. With the old CBA expiring, they knew this off-season would offer historic contracts and no one wanted to miss out.
More than half the league is without a contract and the season starts in less than two months. Apart from players still under rookie contracts, only two veteran players — Phoenix’s Kalani Brown and Seattle’s Lexie Brown — are signed for 2026.
As startling as these numbers seem, the A’ja Wilsons, Napheesa Colliers and most other huge names are expected to remain with their current teams. Wilson, for example, has already verbally committed to returning to the Las Vegas Aces under a new supermax contract, so there’s little hope the greatest player in the world will be coming to Toronto.
Core designations will also keep star players put. They act like the NFL's franchise tag, allowing teams to offer a single supermax contract to a top veteran free agent and retain exclusive negotiation rights. Players can only be cored twice — or for a total of two seasons — over their career and may still negotiate for a sign-and-trade deal to move after being cored.
Other key players seem invested in their team's growth and are unlikely to move even though they have the option. As seen last season, the Sparks are working on a rebuild and have brought in Kelsey Plum and Dearica Hamby as veteran leaders; expect them both to remain in Los Angeles.
Even so, there are key names like 2024 Finals MVP Jonquel Jones, Unrivaled champion Arike Ogunbowale, recent Indiana Fever standout Kelsey Mitchell, Minnesota Lynx star Courtney Williams and countless others who could be on the move. It’s a prime time for the Tempo to attract a legacy-defining player with a big deal.
Free agency is expected to open on April 9 and could mark a time of more contentious negotiations, given the new reported salary cap of $7 million. The new expected average salary range is $600,000, and the supermax contract increases from just over $200,000 to $1.4 million.
Expect these new contracts to have more term than we’ve seen in recent years as well.
Coin flip and college draft
What better way to end months of uncertainty than with the most random decision-maker available: the coin flip.
For the Tempo, the new CBA didn’t lock in everything, as they are still waiting on a coin flip with the Fire to determine who will pick sixth and who will select seventh at the upcoming college draft on April 13. When the coin will be flipped has yet to be decided.
The condensed timeline adds another obstacle for teams ahead of the draft as free agency opens at the same time as the college transfer portal. Players who are eligible to both declare for the draft and spend another year in college have a unique opportunity to connect with teams about their professional prospects before deciding.
Eventually, it will be time to hold a basketball
Training camp begins on April 19, giving the Tempo 10 days to practice before their first test, a pre-season game against the Connecticut Sun on April 29.
The shortened time together will be a challenge for the newly formed Tempo, but the chemistry they build in the early days will be critical for a strong start. One advantage is head coach Sandy Brondello, who has expansion experience from her early playing years. When she first entered the league in 1998, she was selected by the Detroit Shock — a then-expansion team — and knows what it takes for a brand-new group to build trust quickly and prepare for their first season.
After just one single exhibition run-through, Canada’s team will open its inaugural season at home against the Washington Mystics on May 8.
