With the new landmark Collective Bargaining Agreement, the NWSL has only become similar to its European counterparts in the soccer world. However, the NWSL truly stands out in the American sporting scene as the first pro league to get rid of drafts and trades. Seattle Storm legend Sue Bird is excited to see how the NWSL would thrive with the new CBA. But Bird sadly knows that a CBA of this kind would only suit a sport like soccer. She detailed how basketball and the WNBA could never mull adopting a CBA similar to the NWSL’s.

Sue Bird and her fiance and USWNT legend Megan Rapinoe recently sat down for a free-wheeling conversation about the CBAs. Bird opined that the NWSL’s trade and draft policies under the new CBA are a strict no-go in the WNBA.

Sue Bird details why the NWSL-ish CBA would fail in the WNBA

During her appearance on the A Touch More podcast with Sue Bird, Megan Rapinoe pointed out that the NWSL’s agendas in the new CBA align with the norms in European soccer leagues. Convinced that the European leagues have found success with these policies, Bird dismissed the CBA from a WNBA standpoint. “Honestly, basketball, this, I, I don’t even, this would never work,” said Sue Bird. Rapinoe kept on asking Bird why she said so. She replied, “It’s the lack of free agency. The no draft.”

Here, Bird has referred to the WNBA concerning the lack of free agency. In the women’s basketball league, not every player is an unrestricted free agent, unlike the NWSL which guarantees absolute player freedom. The ‘no draft’ remark was a reference to the NWSL, which scrapped the college draft, allowing more youngsters to eye a career in the league. The WNBA, on the other hand, like all other American leagues, thrives on the draft system. Sue Bird, thereafter, detailed how basketball as a game fails to adopt CBAs similar to a sport like soccer.

Bird hints drafts and trades keep teams balanced in terms of talent

Continuing the conversation on CBAs, Sue Bird told Megan Rapinoe that the structure of basketball teams won’t allow the WNBA to mirror the NWSL’s CBA. “In basketball, it’s like the rosters are smaller. You’re only playing five players, so you can’t afford a league can’t afford to have 12 people. The 12 best players go to one team. And I think in soccer it’s a little different. You can actually have super teams and it doesn’t automatically lead to some form of domination. The games just don’t lend to that in the same, whereas the game of basketball lends to domination if you’re too stacked,” said Sue Bird.

Besides, despite being excited about the impact of the new CBA in the NWSL, Bird sounded slightly concerned as to how the league would thrive without drafts. So she came up with a hilarious suggestion to replace drafts. “So you guys, I would love to like replace the draft with something. I don’t know what that would be. Maybe like how kids do letter college letter of intense where it’s like, yeah, a great international player sitting in front of three hats, and she picks up one,” Bird added.

What do you think about the WNBA legend’s observations on CBAs in soccer and basketball? Tell us in the comments.