WNBA legend says new CBA is 'life-changing' for players

A WNBA legend says the new CBA is 'life-changing' for players, allowing them to stay in the U.S.

WNBA legend Diana Taurasi is pleased with the league's progress after a new CBA was ratified by the players.

"We're heading in the right direction. This is a fight that we've been on course for for a long time," Taurasi told USA TODAY Sports while promoting a partnership with Greenies. "These are life-changing decisions for a lot of players. The way that they're gonna approach their basketball careers is going to be a lot different than our generation, where we had to go overseas to Europe and to Russia ― to China ― that was a big sacrifice mentally and physically for our whole generation. So, to have these players know that their future is here in the U.S., and to be able to play in the WNBA, which is the best league in the world, I think it's a win for the players, and more importantly, for the fans that (have) backed this league for a long time. This new generation's just taking it to another level."

Now that the CBA has been ratified by the players, it will go to a board of governors for approval.

Taurasi says despite the agreement taking a "long time" to agree to, it's good for all involved parties. The WNBA and the union went through 17 months of negotiations, including eight marathon days of over 100 hours of meetings in March to get the deal over the line.

"At the end of the day, the players want to play, the owners want to put a product out there, and the league wants to be visible during the Summer," Taurasi said.