Credit: WNBA Finals on USA Network Brendon Kleen Mon, November 2, 2026 at 12:00 AM UTC · 2 min read About Our Ads Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement One of the key efforts by WNBA media to build a better news ecosystem around the league as it explodes in growth has been to push for improved access to players and teams.
In 2023, the league and players' union closed off locker rooms to reporters , reimplementing pandemic-era rules. Most leagues have mandatory windows before and after games during which reporters are allowed into the locker room. The WNBA is the only major American league to have such restrictions, and the NFL was roundly panned when it tried a similar experiment in 2024.
So it was a noteworthy shift this weekend when, after Game 7 of the Finals in San Francisco, the WNBA seemingly allowed some reporters into the Golden State Valkyries' locker room championship celebration to the media. WNBA media, according to Jackie Powell of NBC Sports and The IX , had been shut out from the celebration since 2022.
ESPN basketball reporter Kendra Andrews was on the scene to document the sights and sounds of the Valkyries' triumphal moment. Andrews posted videos from the celebration with the caption "Valkyries' championship locker room," and cameras from USA Network also captured footage that aired on the postgame show for Game 7.
However, a source confirmed to Awful Announcing what Powell noted in a follow-up post: the WNBA welcomed only a small number of reporters into the locker room postgame. Another source shared that other reporters were given access to a separate room at Chase Center, where players participated in press scrums and their loved ones circled nearby.
The WNBA did not respond to a request for comment.
Concerns over privacy and safety drove the WNBA players' union to rescind locker room access years ago. Seemingly, it should be possible to weigh those concerns while also giving reporters the opportunity to cover the moments of exhilaration and relief that come after championship-clinching games. Some of the best stories and on-air moments in sports come during these celebrations.
As several veteran journalists have expressed in the past , the WNBA could benefit strongly from the type of coverage that comes from real access. The league sometimes suffers from a lack of day-to-day news and information that fuels deeper storytelling and conversations on television or podcasts.
As the often cautious WNBA makes strides toward improving its public image and coverage problems, it continues to frustrate even those who cover it day to day with its policies.
The post ESPN's Kendra Andrews posts video from Valkyries' celebration despite league policy against locker room access appeared first on Awful Announcing .
Source: Sports
