Caitlin Clark's WNBA Salary Is Just 0.60% Of NBA Top Pick Wembanyama's Pay
Caitlin Clark has taken the basketball world by storm and is now geared up for the pros. But despite taking women's college basketball to new heights, her WNBA salary won't seem to reflect that.
Clark was selected no. 1 overall by the Indiana Fever on Monday night's WNBA Draft in New York. The Iowa Hawkeyes standout was a shoo-in for the top pick even before her college season ended.
The 22-year-old became a household name in sports the past year after having a beast of a season--posting outrageous stats numbers and breaking both men's and women's NCAA records.
In fact, for the first time in over four decades, the NCAA women's basketball final scored more viewers than the men's championship game--18.9 million, and peaking at 24.1 million, to the men's 14.8 million. It was the most-watched women's college basketball game in history.
Despite all this, Caitlin Clark's WNBA salary in her rookie year is set at just $76,535, according to Spotrac.
This is nowhere near the first year salary of the NBA's 2023 no. 1 draft pick, Victor Wembanyama, who is expected to earn over $12,160,680.
To be specific, Clark's rookie salary is just 0.63% of Wembanyama's pay this season.
Caitlin will still be earning more than the check she'll receive from the league, however. As with most athletes, she's expected to bank more from her endorsement deals with brands like Gatorade and Nike.
She could also earn as much as $250,000 from the WNBA's player marketing agreement wherein athletes serve as their teams' brand ambassadors in the offseason, the Washington Post explained.
While women's sports are making huge leaps in growth and popularity, many still find the salary gap disheartening.
"People have never met LeBron, but they feel like they know him. These women [female professional basketball players] deserve to get paid just as equal," former WNBA player Angel McCoughtry said in a recent interview.
The WNBA 2024 season starts on May 14, with Caitlin Clark's Fever facing the Connecticut Sun.
