WNBA team hiring mascot with higher pay than Caitlin Clark

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You could say that Caitlin Clark and the mascot for the Golden State Valkyries, a WNBA expansion franchise, will have some things in common.

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They’ll both be employed in the world’s biggest women’s basketball league.

They’re both set to entertain throngs of hoops fans at games this season.

They’re both likely to work up a decent sweat doing their jobs.

And they’re both technically entry-level employees, with Clark in the second year of her rookie contract and the Valkyries listing the job opening as such on their website.

However, one of these two will be making a considerably higher salary than the other — and it’s not who you think.

As many users on social media were quick to point out after the job was posted last week, the Valkyries gameday mascot could earn nearly four times more per hour than Clark — the league’s biggest rising star.

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Clark is due to make US$78,066 this coming season, her second in the WNBA with the Indiana Fever, which is the standard base salary as per the league’s CBA.

Converted to an hourly wage, Clark’s salary equates to roughly $40 an hour.

According to the job listing for the Golden State franchise, the mascot job will pay between $130-$160 per hour — roughly three or four times more than Clark earns.

The mascot job listing is a part-time role, however, with the new employee being asked perform “at Valkyries home games, team events and outside appearances.”

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The post also lists the physical demands of the job, which necessitate the “ability to work in a costume” and the “ability to bend, stretch, twist and reach with the body, arms and legs … crucial for executing various dance movements.”

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Much has been made about the lack of how much Clark makes from her contract, despite her stature as one of the league’s biggest stars and a well-known public figure.

During her rookie season, the former Iowa Hawkeyes star earned $76,535.

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In her third WNBA, Clark’s contract rises to $85,873 and, if she takes a fourth-year option, Clark would be set to earn $97,582.

Of course, these meager earnings for a star player are very much offset by her endorsement deals. Clark signed a record-breaking eight-year, $28-million pact with Nike last year, which includes a signature shoe.

She also has partnerships with Gatorade, State Farm, Wilson, Buick and Xfinity, among others.

Kelsey Mitchell, Clark’s teammate with the Fever, currently is the WNBA’s highest-paid player with a salary of $249,244 for this coming season.

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