Engelbert has been commissioner for a 's arrival and helped the league expand to 18 teams, up six, by 2030.
But this season has brought increased scrutiny. There were opportunities to weigh in on important topics sooner, including the recent announcement by former NBA players Enes Kanter Freedom and Royce White that they'd declare for the WNBA draft 's comments that began in Cunningham said the first thing she'd do as commissioner is make sure every team has a "functional practice facility. "
"The tides are turning," she said, noting the Fever's coming practice facility, "but there are a lot of owners who are very cheap and not giving us professional athletes what we need. "
Cunningham clarified that she doesn't want to be commissioner now − but didn't close the door on it in the future − acknowledged how difficult the position is and shared what she feels is a current issue.
"Definitely has to be someone with great communication with the players, because at the end of the day we should be joining forces," she said. "We should be working together to grow this league to the best of its ability. The sky's the limit when we work together.
"Under previous people who are leading (the WNBA), we would be in the same room with each other, we wouldn't even say hi and there were only five people in the room. Is that not like weird or awkward? Be friendly. Be a human. "
Hanlen noted NBA commissioner Adam Silver's communication with star players and willingness to try new things such as the in-season tournament, despite skepticizes for the concept.
"I'm thankful of where we are as a league but there are still people in our league who have been there from the get-go and maybe some (of them) can evolve and see where this is going," Cunningham said. "(But) you have to, excuse my French, have the balls to be like, 'Hey, thank you, but it's time we go in a different direction. ' You need someone with that forward thinking.
"Whoever gets it, I wish them the best of luck. The league is thriving. Who can we bring in to think even bigger than we are as players. A lot of us are very excited for new leadership that is more player-driven. "
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