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Aug 20, 2026; Las Vegas, Nevada, USA; Las Vegas Aces center A'ja Wilson (22) reacts after scoring against the Connecticut Sun during the third quarter of a WNBA basketball game at Michelob Ultra Arena. A photo of the NBA logo has been added to the left side.
On Tuesday morning, the NBA joined the NFL, NHL, MLB, and MLS along with their respective player unions in issuing a memo to State Gaming Commissions and Regulatory Authorities regarding harassment of athletes by bettors.
The memo referred to the group as the “five largest professional sports leagues and players associations.”
Noticeably absent, however, was the WNBA, and the league’s players’ union, which has repeatedly spoken out about player harassment by fans in recent seasons, is not happy about it.
WNBA Players’ Union Calls Out NBA In Statement Addressing Gambling Memo
In the memo, the leagues asked state gaming commissioners for additional regulations that would ban fans who threaten athletes over gambling activity.
“Threatening the safety of an athlete or their family members over a sports bet crosses a bright ethical and criminal line, and it is entirely unacceptable,” the memo read.
This has, of course, happened several times in the WNBA. So why, then, were they left out of the discussion?
“It is deeply disappointing that, given the very public and troubling incidents of betting-related harassment experienced by our members over the past several seasons, the NBA determined that WNBA players did not warrant inclusion in a joint position statement intended to address this very issue,” WNBPA executive director Terri Carmichael Jackson told Front Office Sports.
Perhaps the NBA considered that, because the league owns over 40 percent of the WNBA, it was already spoken for? On top of that, a number of NBA owners also hold stakes in WNBA franchises, and the leagues operate out of the same office in New York City.
Either way, it’s clear that the WNBA isn’t happy that it was yet again an afterthought, only further fueling the seemingly growing tension with its men’s counterpart.