The salaries of No.1 picks in NBA and WNBA drafts point to a glaring pay disparity: A report

The NBA and WNBA draft lottery was announced recently. What caught everyone’s attention was the glaring difference in salary offered to the respective No. 1 picks of the draft. The top pick for the NBA draft, Cooper Flagg, will earn 180 times more than his WNBA counterpart. It has fueled actions from the players’ union and the WNBA, which want a justified pay package for them given their improved crowd-pulling capacity.


Exploring salaries of Cooper Flagg from NBA and Paige Bueckers from WNBA

Cooper Flagg is the No. 1 pick for the NBA draft this year. The 18-year-old forward is ready to get picked by the Dallas Mavericks, who are looking for a rightful replacement for Luka Doncic. The Mavericks are going to pay him an estimated figure of $13 million as a starting salary.

If he plays out four years at Duke Men's Basketball, top prospect Cooper Flagg is due for a big payday according to an estimate by NBA Insider Dane Moore. This is assuming the NBA salary cap increases by 10% per year. Flagg can potentially earn an average of a whopping $80… pic.twitter.com/6nY8OMRINx

— PoloMan (@polo_man404) July 12, 2024

On the other hand, Paige Bueckers, a 23-year-old top pick for the WNBA draft’s salary will be only $350,000 for the first four campaigns. Comparing it with $63 million that Flagg is going to make in the first four years, one can arrive at the startling 180 times difference in the salary of the two.


The difference is so glaring because Bueckers will make $350,000 for the first four years, whereas Flagg will be earning approximately $160,000 per game!



NBA vs WNBA pay difference is a concerning trend and needs immediate rethinking


One can find the difference in pay more sticking out like a sore thumb, and it has not been the first year either. Stephen Curry is the highest-paid NBA player, with his take-home being over $55 million. On the other hand, the highest-paid WNBA player, Jackie Young, is earning only about $250,000.


Talking about last season’s top picks, Caitlin Clark, the WNBA’s top pick, got only $76,735 as her first salary. Her NBA counterpart, the No. 1 pick, Zachary Risacher, signed a 4-year contract for 2024-2027, which fetched him an average salary of $13 million, approximately, for the current season, according to Spotrac’s data.

There is something unfair about Caitlin Clarks’ salary but it’s not what most people are talking about. It makes sense why NBA players make more than WNBA players, they generate more revenue.

It does not make sense why the top NBA 2K League players will make $100,000 in just… pic.twitter.com/W9MqixBIXA

— Power DF (@PowerGotNow) April 16, 2024

Here is the comparison chart of the top-earning players from the NBA and WNBA, which shows there is a sincere need to revamp the salary structure for the WNBA players.






Source: Spotrac


Also Read: NBA stars who are taking home highest salaries this season: Stephen Curry, Nikola Jokic, LeBron James and more


Difference in salary of NBA and WNBA is definitely concerning and needs immediate correction. The WNBA players are no less than NBA counterparts in any manner. Whopping broadcasting contract size for WNBA games is proof of that. Hence, it is high time WNBA players get their due.