BOSTON – Few things are inevitable: death, taxes and Caitlin Clark being selected No. 1 in the WNBA draft. The college basketball phenom will make $76,000 in the first year of his WNBA contract. This figure is less than what someone paid for her one of her basketball cards at auction house PWCC. It leaves fans stunned.
“Honestly, it's embarrassing,” said Rachel Schladenhaufen, a college student who followed Clark's run to the Final Four. “These women are at the top of their game. This woman broke Stephen Curry's record, so she deserves to be paid more than $76,000.”
“She already earned a lot in college, so now she's getting a salary of around 70,000?” asked Ishaan Jalali, another college student. “I was shocked. Because of her, so many people are going to watch the WNBA.”
Front Office Sports reports that Clark's current sponsorship deal is worth approximately $3.1 million. She said even Ice Cube offered her millions of dollars to play in the Big Three Leagues.
“I think the WNBA was always a dream of mine and a place I wanted to go,” Clark said when asked about other playing opportunities.
“It's hard to believe that a famous person would offer you $5 million to play in another league and you would choose $74,000, right?” said Nicolette Aduama of Northeastern University's Department of Social and Athletic Affairs. “I think it’s based on the current state of the sport and what the WNBA can offer.”
In 2022, the NBA will reach the $10 billion mark for the first time. Front Office Sports reported that the WNBA only made $60 million in annual media rights alone. The group hopes to sign a new contract when the current one expires in October next year. The league has said it wants to double that number.
“I think tickets for the Indiana Fever are already sold out,” Schladenhauffen said.
“She's basically like their LeBron. She's insane,” Jallali added.
“We know that both women and men go abroad to play and are paid much more, but the gender pay gap is still very real,” Aduama said.
Perhaps closing that pay gap is another honor Clark can achieve.
