highest paid wnba player

Due to injuries and the pandemic, Delle Donne has only registered three games over the last two seasons. Well give a quick synopsis of the economic perspective here. Why? She primarily plays in Russia, where she earns anywhere between $400,000 $1.5 million dollars per overseas season. All-star guard Jewell Loyd became the highest paid WNBA player after resigning with the Seattle Storm before last season. Basketball icon Sue Bird, who plays for the Storm in what is her last season before retiring, is making the same amount as thats also the leagues veteran minimum salary. Some athletes have performed magnificently and managed signing ludicrous contracts. uolas Tubelis is a Lithuanian-born player who currently plays for the Arizona Wildcats as a junior power forward and has an NIL value of $787,000.With 10,500 followers on Instagram, 31,000 on TikTok, and 1,100 on Twitter, he is currently part of the Arizona Assist Club.While he has no NIL deals currently, his growing value will likely ensure that he receives some prominent deals in the future. In addition to Roc Nation, Skylar also has deals with Sprint and Nike. Although the Storm enjoyed a trip to the semifinals last season, they will have a large gap to fill with the retirement of Sue Bird. She has 687,000 followers on TikTok and 382,000 followers on Instagram, commanding one of the biggest social media followings in all of college sports.Mastrov has deals with Neutrogena, Afterpay, and Quizlet. In recent years, the popularity of the league has been increasing dramatically. Bailey has 567,000 followers on Instagram, commanding a large social media presence.Bailey is signed to Roc Nation Sports, and so far has just one deal with Ethika. So its no mystery why shes one of the leagues top earners. Our overall argument is not only that today, right now WNBA players should be paid more. And approximate what some of them might have made during a peak playing year. Top 10 highest paid players in the WNBA. Hailey Van Lith is one of the highest earning college basketball players, with an NIL value of $526,000.Van Lith, who is a junior point guard at Louisville, is known as one of the best college basketball players in the nation. How much a WNBA rookies makes depends on where she was drafted. In the NBA, the same ratio is about 4.7. This means that not only is the average WNBA salary lower than it should be, the top tier female athletes are underpaid! The 24-year-old guard made her first All-Star team last year after averaging 15.9 points, 4.4 rebounds and 3.9 assists. Phoenix Mercury guard Diana Taurasi, Seattle Storm guard Jewell Loyd and Seattle forward Breanna Stewart are the highest-paid players in the WNBA,. Shes a 7-time blocks leader, and has won a championship with her team, the Phoenix Mercury. While the revenue versus player income statistics in the last sections were compelling in and of themselves, our silver bullet in arguing that WNBA players are due for a larger payday is looking at potential league revenue. Delle Donnes highly anticipated return to competition has the W community on the edge of their seatsas the star forward has been sidelined for nearly two years now. In fact, Deloitte predicts elite womens sport revenues could top almost a billion dollars next year. Im with Roc Nation, where Im the only woman signed. Im ready to have next summer off and focus on getting a European contract where [its] 10 seasons here worth the pay. They are two All-Star-level talents that can turn whatever team they're on into a contender. Brandon Figueroa vs Mark Magsayo Purse Payouts | How Much Both Fighters Will Earn from PPV Fight? As are the Washington Mystics small forwardElena Delle Donne and Connecticut Sun guardDeWanna Bonner. While Diana no longer plays overseas, her career there was an extremely lucrative one. Breanna Stewart - 228.094 dollars. Meanwhile, just for reference, tennis phenom Naomi Osaka comes in at $57.3 million according to Forbes. The highest paid WNBA player this year is a tie between Breanna Stewart, Diana Taurasi, and Jewell Lloyd each making just over $228,000 this year. Mercury G Diana Taurasi: $228,094 (WNBA max salary) Contract: 2 years, $449,544 Average annual value: $224,772 t-1. Emoni Bates is one of the highest earning college basketball players, with an NIL value of $657,000.Bates is a 610 small forward and was the fifth best player in the recruiting class of 2021.Bates originally committed to Michigan State, then rescinded his commitment to attend Memphis. Viviane Araujo vs Amanda Ribas Purse Payouts | How Much Both Earn from PPV Money & Bonuses? And shesignedon to exclusively wear LeBron Jamessignatureline on court. Loyd is pocketing the contract salary of $231,515 whereas the endorsements have increased the net worth up to $2.1 million. Also, there was no 2020 All-Star game, which wouldve netted players chosen a bonus of $2,575. But she recently signed deals with life insurance company Symetra (along with her life partner, Megan Rapinoe). Not surprisingly, Sue Bird made the salary cap of $221,450 in 2021. Get ready for the 2023 WNBA season: Save 23% on your subscription! For the first few years of the league's history, it was so unpopular that the NBA had to subsidize the operating cost of their female counterpart. So she will now receive $100,000 to train in the United States. The highest-paid NBA players by season has recently eclipsed $40 million. She has 1.2 million followers across all platforms.Johnson has endorsement deals with HighlightHER, Puma, Meta, Taco Bell, and POWERHANDZ.Johnson is also a rapper who announced her commitment to LSU in her own song. Picks 9-12 will earn $66,306, while second round picks will receive $63,389 in 2022. In 2021, Diana Taurasi, Sue Bird, Elena Delle Donne, Brittney Griner, Skylar Diggins-Smith, DeWanna Bonner, and Liz Cambage were the highest paid WBNA players. These seven players. The highest paid WNBA players ever might surprise you. Shes been named league MVP twice, has been an All-Star 5 times, including being named the All-Star MVP in 2013. , heres a breakdown of how much rookies drafted in 2022 made this season: According to Spotrac, Rhyne Howard, NaLyssa Smith, Shakira Austin and Emily Engstler, the top four picks in 2022, all have salaries of $72,141. The highest paid players in the WNBA in 2022 are those with super-maximum contracts. Earning a second WNBA title and a second WNBA Finals MVP award. Shes signed contracts with Gatorade, Adidas, and Beats by Dre, Band-Aid, Capital One, and CarMax, among others. Russell Westbrook, who opted into the final year of his contract for next season, is the highest-paid Laker over both LeBron James and Anthony Davis for next season. In 2020, the leagues latest collective bargaining agreement bumped the maximum salary for the highest-paid players from $117,500 to $215,000. Overall, the average annual salaries in the NBA are much higher than in the WNBA. The WNBA is a very new league, only having been founded in the late 1990s. Amari Bailey is one of the highest earning college basketball players, with an NIL value of $520,000.Bailey was a top prospect in the 2022 class. She has 763,000 followers across all platforms, including 673,000 on Instagram.Van Lith has endorsement deals with Adidas, 94 Feet of Game App, Billionaire Girls Club, Dicks Sporting Goods, and The Shaquille ONeal Foundation. Brittney Griners ongoing detention is Russia, This is a great book detailing the history of professional Womens basketball, The Highest WNBA salary is $228,000 while in the NBA its over $45 million. 1. A teacher makes approximately $35,000-$55,000 yearly. A knee injury kept her out of the 2019 campaign, but she has otherwise played for the Seattle Storm in every WNBA season dating back to 2002. The salary cap is determined during the offseason, but as stated earlier, it is liable to change.[2]. Since then, she is leading a glorious career. A recent New York Times article talks about how Paige Bueckers is waiting to go pro because there is more money in college basketball than in womens professional basketball. In February 2020, Bonner was signed and traded to the Connecticut Sun, making her eligible for supermax earnings there. Sue has been with Nike since 2003. Diggins was drafted third overall by the Tulsa Shock in the 2013 WNBA draft. Borderline unstoppable in this years playoffs, Gray helped the Aces win their first WNBA title en route to her first WNBA Finals MVP. Once that happens, WNBA salaries will reach the place where they should be for the entertainment value they are capable of providing. (66 kg) Skylar Diggins-Smith is a WNBA standout who receives a salary of $221,450, making her one of the four highest-paid WNBA players in the league. Mia Mastrov is one of the highest earning college basketball players, with an NIL value of $375,000.Mastrov is a sophomore guard at the University of California. Who is the highest-paid WNBA player in 2023? The groundbreaking collective bargaining agreement unveiled by the WNBPA, WNBA Board of Governors, and WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert in January 2020 boosted base salaries and continues to provide for extra earning opportunities for WNBA players. Patrick Ewing became the first player to earn $15 million or more in the 95-96 season with a . Magic Johnson became the first player to earn $10 million or more in the 94-95 season with a salary of $14,660,000. This is a great book detailing the history of professional Womens basketball. She made $1.5 million per season with the Russian team UMMC Ekaterinburg. Check out the highest-paid player on each WNBA team for the 2022 campaign below: Top editors give you the stories you want delivered right to your inbox each weekday. WNBAstarswho earn the most money are true international superstars who live luxurious lives on and off the court. And before the first games tip off on Friday, Insider took a look at the league's highest-paid players on each team based on Spotrac's salary figures. Bates was dismissed from Memphis following legal troubles and now finds himself at Eastern Michigan. While her endorsement pay (including TV commercials) has been kept private, well take a modest estimate of $250,000. In order to be fairly compensated, you need to know what to ask for. She, along with 7 other WNBA players, also has a Glossier deal. With the 2022 WNBA season tipping off Friday, we took a look at the league's highest-paid players. A New Approach to Mathematical Sports Analytics. The highest paid WNBA players are certainly not paid enough. The average NBA player makes about 60x as much as the average WNBA player. If not for the remarkably low average WNBA salary, the Ws stars would not be compelled to play in overseas leagues in the offseason. For picks No. Be the first one to comment on this story. Out of those ten players chosen that year, Kobe Bryant was the only player that was also among the game's ten highest-paid during the 201011 NBA season.[6]. When that happens, the average WNBA salary will be more representative of the quality of the players in the W. Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email. The lowest paid player for the Los Angeles Clippers in the 2020-21 NBA season is Daniel Oturu who will be paid a guaranteed $898,310. They are Diana Taurasi, Breanna Stewart, and Jewell Loyd. WNBA stars Diana Taurasi, Breanna Stewart, and Jewell Loyd earn the most money in the WNBA, putting them among the highest paid athletes of all time. The Liberties young star point guard Sabrina Ionescu is slated to make $76,297 this upcoming season. And a 2021 championship with the Chicago Sky. Hanna Cavinder is the highest earning womens NCAA basketball player, with an NIL value of $846,000.Cavinder is a senior point guard at the University of Miami.She has amassed 4.7 million followers across all social media, making her the most followed college basketball athlete.Her 4.2 million TikTok followers makes her one of the most popular college athletes in the United States. In 2021, Delle Donne earned the updated supermax base salary of $221,450. With the 2021 WNBA season tipping off Friday, we took a look at the league's highest-paid players. AP Photo/Ashley Landis Las Vegas Aces A'ja Wilson and Chelsea Gray ($196,267) A'ja Wilson and Chelsea Gray. To make our point, we need to look at the viewership statistics of a more established womens sports league: womens college basketball. In celebration, Mercury GM Jim Pitman emphasized the obvious: [Diana] is the heart of our franchise, the first face on our Mount Rushmore, the best winner and competitor in the womens game. So that she wouldnt get injured and not be able to play for UMMC. Adding to her wallet, Diana also makes $20,000-$30,000 per speaking engagement. However, we expect WNBA viewership to increase rapidly in the near future. As detailed by CNBC, the average pay for a WNBA player in the season prior to the new agreement was around $116,000. Knocked out in the second round of the playoffs, the Phoenix Mercury, Skylars current team, earned her a team bonus of $1,803. With that in mind, it should come as no surprise that many of the richest contracts in WNBA history were signed over the last couple of seasons. The American professional basketball player signed a worthy contract with Phoenix Mercury earning her $224,870 yearly, contributing greatly to her total net worth of $400k. Chicago Sky | F/C | 6-foot-4; 2020 stats: 14.7 PPG, 9.7 RPG, 4.6 APG; Parker's move from Los Angeles, the team that drafted her first in 2008 . In spite of the Suns disappointing loss in the WNBA Finals, Bonner enjoyed an efficient postseason that saw her come up clutch in the semifinals against the Chicago Sky. In 2020, the top WNBA base salary was $215,000; in 2019, the top WNBA base salary was $117,500. No matter how you slice it, the pay gap in the WNBA versus the NBA is remarkable. He amassed 1.6 million Instagram followers, and 2.7 million TikTok followers, much from his high school basketball highlight videos going viral. If the leagues popularity continues to increase as it is, the average WNBA salary will follow suit. Access your favorite topics in a personalized feed while you're on the go. Three franchises will pay their top-earning player less than $200,000 for the upcoming campaign. A multi-year deal means big bucks and a big bet, so lets add in another $1 million for her sponsorship. The lowest-paid player in the WNBA is Mercurys Kaela Davis. Outside of Young, other names on the list of the highest-paid WNBA players include Arike Ogunbowale of the Dallas Wings, Jewell Loyd of the Seattle Storm and Phoenix Mercury guard Skylar Diggins. High consumption of womens college basketball indicates that there is an appetite for increased consumption of womens professional basketball. In 2020, the leagues, Heres everything you need to know about salaries in the WNBA (all numbers via. The women's basketball players who make the most money are typically the best players in the game. Under the new agreement, the base salary increased to $130,000. In Dallas, guard Allisha Gray ($164,800) will be the top earner on a youthful Wings team set to be held down by its burgeoning superstarsArike Ogunbowale ($72,141) and Satou Sabally ($76,297) will have to wait until at least 2023 for the substantial pay rises they deserve. Net Worth: $400,000 WNBA Team: Phoenix Mercury Position: Point Guard Height: 5 ft. 9 in (1.75 m) Weight: 145 lbs. The third highest salary on the 2022 championship Las Vegas Aces roster was all-star guard Kelsey Plum. The league minimum salary is now $58,710. And shes only been in the league seven years! Hansel Enmanuel is the highest earning college basketball player with an NIL value of $1.5 million. To the confusion of CBA novices, eighth-year players Brittney Griner and Skylar Diggins-Smith both out-earned teammate and resident GOAT Diana Taurasi in 2020 by nearly $100,000. Sue is also a part of Team USA. All-star guard Jewell Loyd became the highest paid WNBA player after resigning with the Seattle Storm before the 2021 season. Patrick Ewing became the first player to earn $15 million or more in the 95-96 season with a salary of $18,724,000. Due to injuries and other factors, Sue hasnt played overseas since 2014. However, in order to help the Storm retain key talent in 2022, Sue took at pay cut down to a mere $72,141. Shes also currently a member of Team USA. The base max salary is $190,550. Shes part of Carmelo Anthonys basketball video lessons program, and she was the first woman on the cover of NBA 2K. She has been with the Dream since she first entered the league in 2o12 after being selected 14th overall in the draft. How much a WNBA rookies makes depends on where she was drafted. And shes got her own media company Togethxr along with three other star athletes. Full list of highest paid players. The two-time champion is leaving the Seattle Storm after six seasons to play for the New York Liberty. Where she made 10-20 times more than her WNBA salary! Some of the WNBA's biggest stars are currently free agents in search of new contracts, including Breanna Stewart andCourtney Vandersloot. Brittney is a powerhouse when it comes to overseas play and shes compensated pretty well for it. To that point, Taurasis most recent contract was negotiated under the previous CBA, leaving her criminally underpaid. This is over half of the average viewership for an average NFL game, the undisputed king of American sports from a viewership and revenue perspective. To me, this says that viewers are interested in watching womens sports. The NBA salary cap is the maximum dollar amount each NBA team can spend on its players for the season. See the highest and lowest player salaries in the NBA on ESPN.com. And add that to her bank. Up next, check out the rest of our WNBA salary series, with the lowest paid WNBA players. AP Photo/Danny Karnik Los Angeles Sparks . Shes racked up quite a resume. Basically, knowledge is power! Top 10: Who is the Best WNBA Player of All Time? Plus Skylars additional endorsements and her work as a Phoenix Suns broadcasts as analyst, altogether which weve guess-timated to be near $500,000. Including being named twice to the All-WNBA First Team and twice to the All-WNBA Second team. Double trouble. Jessica Penne vs Tabatha Ricci Purse Payouts | How Much Both Earn from PPV Money at UFC 285? In 2022, the highest paid WNBA players are Breanna Stewart, DeWanna Bonner, Jewell Loyd, Elena Delle Donne, Skylar Diggins-Smith, Brittney Griner, and Diana Taurasi. In 2017 she was inducted into the Women Basketball Hall of Fame. The 27-year-old has the 151st-ranked salary in the league at $1,607. She is famous for her multiple abilities and incredible guarding at the point region. Rookie Road may earn a commission when you buy through links on our site. Highest-paid active WNBA players. Clocking in roughly $228,094 for the year, Loyd is currently in the midst of bringing the Storm back to the WNBA mountaintop. The ability to dunk in the WNBA pays off handsomely, which is one of the reasons why the 67 Brittney is such a valuable asset. Who is the highest-paid WNBA player in 2023? UFC 285 Fighters Salaries | Jones vs Gane Purse Payouts | How Much Fighters Earn from PPV Money Bonuses? But award money calculations are based off of 2020 results. Candaces bread and butter come from her lucrative endorsement deals, which reportedly net her a whopping $3 million dollars! Thus, looking at average salaries biases the argument in favor of the men! Kidding. ), WNBA players are earning more than they ever have and its well-deserved. DeWanna Bonner spent 10 seasons with the Phoenix Mercury, and in that time, she became one of the WNBA's superstars. In 2019, prior to the new CBA, she capped out at $117,500. By clicking Sign up, you agree to receive marketing emails from Insider Highest-paid WNBA Players of 2022 by Total Salary Dollar figures via Spotrac based on a 2022 salary cap of $1,379,170. Copyright 2023 Sporting News Holdings Limited. NBA Player Salaries - 2022-2023 . The Phoenix Mercury boast three supermax playersand yes, one of them, at long last, is Diana Taurasi. Scott Rafferty is a Senior NBA Editor for The Sporting News. When comparing college leagues, the men draw about 15 times more viewers than the women. A 12 team league cant possibly bring in the same revenue as a 30-team league. Even so, that feat earned Diana another $1,803. So she will now receive close to $100,000 to train for United States. The professional game is of an indisputably higher quality than the college game. [3] Another exception, known as the mid-level exception, allows for teams that are over the salary cap to sign one or more players as long as they do not exceed the total amount of the average NBA salary. However, some still manage to make 6 figures for their incredible performances. So today, we break down potential revenue streams for our favorite female athletes. The trajectory of our organization changed the day we drafted her 17 years ago, and we are excited she will be here into the future. The deal could be the last of Taurasis career, but we can feel relieved that she is reaping some of the benefits shes worked to sow for the next generation. A Quick History of WNBA Profitability. Her contract salary with the club is $224.870. The Ace's core remains young and hungry after their first taste of winning, but can they do it again next season? NBA players get paid more because their league makes more money, full stop. However, she did receive her full pay, thanks to the new WNBA CBA. Your login session has expired. The highest-paid WNBA player makes 22.8 percent of what Hammon does. Leagues in their infancy need time to expand, find their audience, and exploit their revenue streams. No doubt, this WNBA veteran is a superstar. While the details of her Roc Nation deal havent been divulged, its Sports President, Juan Perez, says that Skylar has earned far more than if shed played abroad. Thats why, for office professionals for example, sites that provide pay transparency like Glassdoor have been so clutch in addressing pay gaps. Duke Blue Devils vs UNC Tar Heels College Basketball Rivalry. As of February, the title of the highest-paid WNBA player belongs to Jackie Young of the Las Vegas Aces. And did we mention that shes also the leagues all-time highest scorer? Taurasi was actually the fourth-highest earner on her team last year, and took home nearly 35% less than sixth woman Bria Hartley did. List of highest paid Major League Baseball players, "Kobe Bryant to Become NBA's Second Ever $30-Million Player", "The NBA's 25 highest-paid players for the 2016-17 season", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Highest-paid_NBA_players_by_season&oldid=1142898961, National Basketball Association statistical leaders, Employee compensation in the United States, Short description with empty Wikidata description, Wikipedia pages semi-protected against vandalism, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, This page was last edited on 4 March 2023, at 22:55. Last season Loyd averaged 17.9 points, 3.8 assists, and 1.4 steals, earning her All-WNBA First team honors. WNBA stars Diana Taurasi, Breanna Stewart, andJewell Loyd earn the most money in the WNBA, puttingthemamongthe highest paid athletesof all time. She will earn a base salary of $228,094 next season. Max and supermax players now receive annual 3 percent salary bumps, and by 2027, the salary cap will have grown incrementally by nearly $300,000. In 2021, the star signed a multiyear shoe deal with Puma that guarantees her the creation and release of her own signature sneaker. In this article well list a few reasons and statistics why we think the average WNBA salary is lower than it should be. Most recently, her impact was big enough on and off the court to net her Sports Illustrateds Sportsperson of the Year. As of now, the details of her contract have not been announced. And famously sat out the WNBA 2015-2016 season. He has deals with Adidas, Campus Ink, Merchants Bank of Indiana, Turnstone Center, and Push Paddle or Pedal. In the afterglow of a hard-fought championship, 2019 WNBA MVP Elena Delle Donne re-signed with the Washington Mystics in the 2020 offseason to a well-deserved supermax deal. And while agents negotiate on players behalves, knowing your own worth ensures you get more of the type of monetary gain you deserve. There is a significant appetite for professional womens sports. Candace Parker is the first big name to join a new team in free agency. In the WNBA world, the story on everyones mind is Brittney Griners ongoing detention is Russia. This means in the NBA, the best paid player makes about six and a half times as much as the average player. Skylar Diggins-Smith - $221,450. And the viewership is increasing rapidly. its no wonder why Liz Cambages earnings ar eup there. Not only that but the maximum salary a WNBA player could earn almost doubled, from $117,500 to $215,000 in 2020, per ESPN. Here are the top. According to Spotrac, Jewell Loyd and Arike Ogunbowale are currently set to be the highest-paid WNBA players in the 2023 season, with each of them earning $234,936. Now, compare the average WNBA salary (128,000) versus the average NBA salary (7.5 million). Chelsea Gray is a hardened veteran, and one of the best shotmakers in the league. She has 1 million followers on Instagram, 465,000 on TikTok, and 77,000 on Twitter.She is expected to be a top pick in the WNBA Draft, whenever she declares. Deals can't be officially signed until Feb. 1. To receive email updates when new articles are posted, use the subscription form below! Stewart is currently having an expensive contract deal with Seattle Storm. Hammon was an assistant coach for the NBA's San Antonio Spurs for eight seasons before making the leap to become a head coach in the WNBA.