TheWNBA free agencyperiod opened with a bombshell trade on April 6 whenthe Atlanta Dream acquired Angel Reese from the Chicago Skyin exchange for two first-round draft picks, a deal that could have significant financial implications for both teams.
The trade allows the Sky to avoid paying Reese the much higher salary she is owed this season under the terms of theWNBA’s new collective bargaining agreementnegotiated between the players’ union and the league last month, which includes massive pay raises across the league.
Reese,the seventh overall pick by Chicagoin the2024 WNBA Draft, enters the third season of a four-year, rookie-scale contract initially worth $324,383 in total. However, Reese and 37 other players on existing rookie deals will have their salaries adjusted to align with the updated rookie scale established in the new CBA. That means Reese’s base salary for the 2026 season will increase from about $75,000 to $350,692, according to Spotrac.
Reese’s contract has a team option for the 2027 season. If exercised, she’d earn $396,282 – unless she receives All-WNBA honors this season, in which case she’d be eligible next season for a maximum contract worth up to $1.4 million.
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That’s not a far-fetched scenario for Reese, a two-time WNBA All-Star who led the league in rebounding average in each of her first two seasons and was named to the All-Rookie team in 2024.
Althoughtrading Reese is effectively a short-term salary dump for Chicago,which had the seventh highest player payroll in the league last season, Atlanta could consider it beneficial that Reese’s contract is cost controlled for at least one season as player salaries continue to climb.
In 2026, the average salary in the WNBA is expected to be $583,000 while the minimum is $270,000 to $300,000 based on years of service. Reese’s salary is on the lower side and equivalent to 5% of the $7 million salary cap, which gives the Dream some flexibility when it comes to roster construction and navigating the remainder of free agency.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY:Angel Reese trade: How WNBA's new CBA affects her Atlanta Dream salary