WNBA players seek proper pay day from growing league

The most powerful performance of the WNBA All Star Game did not belong to Napheesa Collier, who starred at Incarnate Word and then Connecticut before becoming a dominant force with the Minnesota Lynx.

Collier scored a WNBA All-Star Game record 36 points and collected nine rebounds in Team Collier’s 151-131 victory over Team Clark, which was led by Caitlin Clark.

Her effort was topped, though, by the unity shown by All Stars who donned “Pay Us What You Owe Us” t-shirts during warmups. Fans that filled Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, home of Clark’s Indian Fever, supported the players’ cause by chanting “pay them, pay them.”

According to Spotrac, a go-to website to learn salaries of pro athletes, Clark’s fever teammate Kelsey Mitchell is currently the highest-paid WNBA player with a base salary of $249,244.

Following Mitchell to round out the top 5 are Arike Ogunbowale of the Dallas Wings, and Jewell Loyd the Las Vegas Aces at $249,032. Kahleah Copper of the Phoenix Mercury nets $248,134, and Gabby Williams, Seattle Storm forward, collects $225,000.

Neither Clark nor Collier is in the WNBA top 10 when it comes to base contracts. However, both have lucrative endorsement deals.

Spotrac lists Clark’s four-year rookie salary at $84,514 annually, totaling $338,056. But she has earned a $28 million deal with Nike, and has endorsement contracts with Wilson Sporting Foods, Gatorade, and State Farm.

Collier has received an “max-contract” extension from the Lynx that delivered a three-year deal worth $552,516 – an average of $184,172 annually. Her 2025 base salary is $214,284.

While it is not enclosed, her endorsement deal with Jordan Brand likely tops her annual WNBA salary.

In July 2024, the WNBA announced an 11-year television package that includes ESPN, Amazon, and NBC. The $2.2 billion package begins with the 2026 season and will pay an average of $200 million a year.

WNBA players and the league are bargaining on a new contract that will hopefully deliver more money to those who perform in arenas throughout the country and create the product.

Entering 2025, WNBA teams have a rather low salary cap of $1,507,100. Its franchises must spend at least $1,261,440 on player compensation.

It is suddenly obvious why the players donned the shirts during All-Star Game weekend.

A negotiation session on Thursday July 17, 2025, that was attended by 40 players was called “a missed opportunity,” by WNBA Players Association president Nneka Ogwumike.

In an interview with ESPN, she said, “Based on what we saw and based on what we’re proposing, it’s two fundamentally different systems, and one that leans more towards a fixed percentage is what the league is responding to us with.”

“We want to have a better share where our salaries grow with the business, and not just a fixed percentage over time.”

WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert said the league wants to “significantly increase [player] salary and benefits while balancing with our owners their ability to have a path to profitability as well as continued investment.”

The Reid Roundup

Maybe the WNBA players aren’t as unified as first thought. All-Star Kelsey Plum said a meeting was held on Saturday morning before that night’s game and the t-shirt idea was approved. “Not to tattletale, but zero members of Team Clark were very present for that.” While Caitlin Clark’s team might not have been “all in,” they did wear the shirts…Skylar Diggins, a Seattle Storm guard who played for St. Louisan Niele Ivey at Notre Dame, recorded the WNBA All-Star Game’s first triple double. She scored 15 points, with 11 rebounds and 15 assists…Kansas City Chiefs wide receiver Rashee Rice pleaded guilty to several charges in connection with a high-speed accident that left at least two people injured last year. Rice, who fled the scene on foot, must serve 30 days in jail (over five years) and likely faces a lengthy NFL suspension…Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes is rated the NFL’s top quarterback by Associated Press writers in a preseason poll…

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