The record-breaking NCAA basketball star Caitlin Clark has bid farewell to the University of Iowa basketball and collegiate stardom to enter into the limelight of the WNBA.
Going into the WNBA draft on On Monday night, 15 April 2024, Clark was selected the first pick in the draft by the Indiana Fever.
Speaking after the announcement on Monday night, Clark said: "I'm excited...This is the most competitive league in the entire world, less than 144 spots. So you better bring it every single night."
"I dreamed of this moment since I was in second grade, and it's taken a lot of hard work, a lot of ups and downs."
Reaction from the draft party in Indiana as the Fever take Caitlin Clark with the No. 1 pick 🗣️
🎥 @RomeovilleKid | #WNBADraft pic.twitter.com/HDJl1D3mHY— The Athletic (@TheAthletic) April 15, 2024
Now that Clark will not longer be a collegiate star, some have argued that Clark may have been better off to have another year at collegiate level, given that the women's NCAA league receives more publicity than the WNBA (despite the ESPN's efforts).
In Clark's final collegiate game, the Iowa Hawkeyes lost to the South Carolina Gamecocks. The game was one of the most viewed ever in college basketball - men's or women's - with 24 million tuning in. Tickets were sold for as high as $11,000.
Last year, the WNBA attracted an average of 6,600 fans per game, averaged 500,000 TV viewers during the 2023 regular season and averaged 728,000 viewers for the 2023 WNBA Finals. The Indiana Fever drew an average of 4,067 fans per game last season and finished last in the Eastern Conference with a record of 13-27.
Clark picked up lucrative endorsement deals totalling around $3.5 million while she was playing college ball. In contrast, the WNBA's base salary for top draft picks pales in comparison to potential earnings through endorsements.
This week, Clark's rookie salary with the professional league has sparked outrage over pay disparity in women’s basketball. According to Spotrac, the 22-year-old athlete is expected to sign a contract four-year contract with the Fever worth $338,056. Clark will earn $76,535 in her rookie season this summer, and is projected to earn an annual salary of $97,582 by the end of her four-year contract.
the statistically greatest college basketball player in history is getting paid a 5 digit salary in a professional sports league. ridiculous https://t.co/HaTR0UY8tQ
— Ethan🔆🦑🇵🇸 (@chonkyleclerc) April 16, 2024
Even US President Joe Biden called for female athletes to be “paid what they deserve” amid outrage over Clark’s first-year salary. “Women in sports continue to push new boundaries and inspire us all,” he began his post on X, formerly Twitter. “But right now we’re seeing that even if you’re the best, women are not paid their fair share.
Women in sports continue to push new boundaries and inspire us all.
But right now we're seeing that even if you're the best, women are not paid their fair share.
It’s time that we give our daughters the same opportunities as our sons and ensure women are paid what they deserve.— President Biden (@POTUS) April 16, 2024
Given all that Clark was able to accomplish in college - now considered to be one of the greatest collegiate players of all time who brought much visibility to women's basketball, there is hope that the Caitlin Clark effect will take hold and will transform the WNBA.
