With the future of the WNBA’s 2026 season uncertain, Brianna Stewart, a key player for the Liberty, is preparing to rejoin Fenerbahce Opet in April.
On Tuesday, Fenerbahce confirmed that Stewart has renewed her contract with the Turkish team, aiming to help them advance to the playoffs in April.
She’s set to participate in the Final 6, taking place in Zaragoza, Spain, from April 15 to 19.
Stewart’s return to Fenerbahce comes amid ongoing collective bargaining discussions in the WNBA.
As it stands, WNBA training camp is to start on April 19, with players expected by May 1. However, the season’s kickoff on May 8 could face delays if labor negotiations remain unresolved.
There are talks about revising the league’s priority rules, but any changes are not likely to impact the upcoming season right away.
Having played for Fenerbahce during the 2022-23 season, Stewart led the team to its first EuroLeague Women’s Championship. She earned the title of Final Four MVP that year, alongside being named to the All-EuroLeague first team.
Interestingly, she opted out of the recent WNBA offseason to collaborate with Napheesa Collier on launching Unrivaled, a new 3-on-3 basketball league debuting soon.
A goal behind founding Unrivaled, based in Miami, was to allow players to remain in the U.S. rather than taking overseas gigs during the WNBA offseason.
As far as comments from Stewart’s representation, they haven’t responded to inquiries from The Post.
The Women’s National Basketball Players Association (WNBPA) is currently poised to send a new CBA proposal after the WNBA provided a counter-offer on February 6, following a six-week wait for a response.
This ongoing negotiation has been complicated by differing opinions on what a fair revenue-sharing model should look like.
Despite the challenges, Stewart recently expressed a more hopeful outlook regarding the discussions.
“I feel better,” she mentioned on a recent episode of Turner’s “Game Recognize Game with Stewie and Myles” podcast. “I sense that the owners are beginning to truly understand and engage with us as players.”
Until a new CBA is secured, the WNBA can’t move forward with important events like the expansion draft, free agency, or college draft, all of which need to happen before training camp starts.
Though Stewart is an unrestricted free agent in the WNBA, she has made it clear that she intends to re-sign with the Liberty for the 2026 season.
In her previous season, Stewart played 31 games for the Liberty, averaging 18.3 points, 6.5 rebounds, and 3.5 assists, with a shooting percentage of 46.1.
Currently, she competes for the Unrivaled Mists, where she’s averaging 19.7 points and 9.4 rebounds.
The regular season for Unrivaled concludes at the end of this month, with playoffs scheduled to run from February 28 to March 4. Semifinals will occur on March 2 at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, followed by remaining games in Miami.
