Sassy Cassie: Pay WNBA players more or risk the season

The WNBA was established in 1996, and when it first began, it had eight teams. Now, the league is going to expand to a total of 18 teams. This doesn’t come as a shock as the push toward more women’s sports leagues rises. Not to mention the uptick in viewership and attention the league has received recently.

In 2025, viewership for the WNBA was up 23%, and ticket sales were up 26%. Although the league is booming with talent and sales, it’s failing its players.

All the success the league has seen in recent years can come to a halt if the league continues to refuse to pay its players what they deserve. 

In 2020, the WNBA and the Women’s National Basketball Players Association reached a new Collective Bargaining Agreement: players’ salaries increased and player experiences were enhanced. The deal was supposed to last until 2027, but in 2024, the board of the players’ association and executives opted out of the CBA. The opt-out has forced negotiation to start between both the union and league before the 2026 season starts. 

In the 2025 season, during the WNBA All-Star games, players came out wearing “Pay Us What You Owe Us” T-shirts, a direct comment on the current CBA and what players are paid. 

The league minimum in the WNBA is $66,079 with a salary cap of $1,507,100. The NBA league minimum is $1,272,870. A rookie in the NBA, who barely touches the court, can be making more than WNBA superstar Caitlin Clark, whose WNBA contract is $114,000. Out of her estimated 2025 earnings of $16.1 million, only 0.7% of it comes from the WNBA.

The WNBA’s 30th season is scheduled to start May 8, with the draft April 13. However, without a new CBA in place, players could go on strike. Players already agreed to go on strike if a new contract isn’t reached soon. Of course, nobody wants to go on strike and delay the season; players want to play the game. 

Delaying a season could also risk the success they have had over the past few years. 

However, the players deserve a better contract and should 100% go on strike if the contract proposed isn’t up to standard. The league is growing, and looking at league revenue and players’ pay, it’s unequal compared to the NBA. 

NBA players make 49%-51% of the league’s revenue, while the WNBA players make 9.3% of the league’s revenue. The money comes from ticket sales, broadcast TV deals and merchandise. Although, the WNBA is not as widely watched as the NBA, its growth means players should be making more. The WNBA isn’t at a point where it could pay its top athletes numbers like the NBA does, but a lot of its athletes aren’t getting paid enough to live. 

For years, WNBA players would have to play basketball overseas in the offseason to make more money. Now, with a new 3-on-3 league, Unrivaled, players can stay in the states and play. However, these professional athletes shouldn’t have to play more in the offseason to afford to live. They shouldn’t have to look at overseas opportunities or other leagues to function during the offseason. 

Women’s sports in general are growing across the country, and the WNBA is leading the charge. That could all change if the WNBA doesn’t reach a fair contract to pay its players what they deserve, and soon, they may risk losing viewership due to a players’ strike. 

Cassie is a senior studying communications at Ohio University. Please note the views expressed in this column do not reflect those of The Post. Want to talk to Cassie? Email her at cb086021@ohio.edu.