South Carolina coach Dawn Staley pleased the WBNA and players’ union reached an agreement

By Canadian Press on March 20, 2026.

COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — South Carolina coach Dawn Staley is excited about what the WNBA’s new collective bargaining agreement will mean for future Gamecocks, even if her players don’t yet fully understand the impact it could have on their careers.

Staley said Friday the agreement, which WNBA players are being briefed on, will give future pros on her roster like Raven Johnson and Tessa Johnson more money and flexibility about where or if they’ll play overseas.

“I will say the players’ association and all the officers in the players’ association, just bore down and fought for their worth and the worth of current players as well as the future,” Staley said a day before her top-seeded Gamecocks start the NCAA Tournament against 16th-seeded Southern U.

Staley was a decorated player who went to three Final Fours with Virginia before becoming a centerpiece performer in the defunct ABL and, eventually, the WBNA. She had little choice but to play outside of the United States because of limited opportunities in her home country.

Now, future pros like Raven and Tessa Johnson have wider options when charting their careers.

Staley also praised the WNBA for its willingness to negotiate with its players.

“They understand they have to be on this side of such an historical deal, they understand they have to be on this side of history to move our game forward,” Staley said.

Raven and Tessa Johnson were asked Friday if they were following the pending agreement and what it might mean for their careers. Staley, who said she planned to brief her players on what was happening but had not yet, stepped in explain the potential impact.

The salary structure could mean incoming first-round picks earn more entering the league than both of South Carolina’s No. 1 overall picks in A’ja Wilson of the Las Vegas Aces and Aliyah Boston of the Indiana Fever.

“When you enter into the league, you’re going to make probably 100 times, 75 times, more than someone 30 years ago, 10 years ago, five years ago,” Staley said. “You’re going to make much more money than the No. 1 pick and we’ve had two of them.”

“Good thing you came back Raven,” Staley said.

Raven Johnson had the option to go pro last spring, but returned for a fifth season at South Carolina.

“It’s going to be lucrative,” the coach said.

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AP March Madness bracket: https://apnews.com/hub/ncaa-womens-bracket and coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/march-madness

Pete Iacobelli, The Associated Press

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