Russell Wilson Takes To Twitter To Pray For Caitlin Clark And WNBA Players To Earn More, Promptly Gets Roasted

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Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Russell Wilson took to X, formerly Twitter, to share his opinion that Caitlin Clark and her now-fellow WNBA players deserve to earn higher salaries. Folks living in reality who have the simplest understanding of how businesses operate immediately called out Wilson for his statement.

Monday night wasn't solely reserved for the 2024 WNBA Draft or for Caitlin Clark to be the first-overall pick to the Indiana Fever.   It was an opportunity for anyone who hasn't been paying attention to learn that salaries for WNBA players are incredibly low compared to those we see given to male athletes in the four major sports.

According to SportRac, there were only 17 WNBA players during the 2023 season who had an average salary of over $200,000 with Jackie Young of the Las Vegas Aces topping the list with a salary of $252,450.

This is news to some, even those who pretend to pay attention to the WNBA. As for Clark, she won't even be earning a six-figure salary for the first four years of her contract with the Fever. During her rookie season, the all-time leading scorer in women's hoops will earn a salary $76,535 with that number slightly increasing each season before maxing out at just over $97,000 in 2027 during her contract option year.

Clark will of course make well-over $1 million off of endorsement deals each year, but Wilson simply can't believe her salary.

Caitlin Clark's Enters WNBA Television Reality

There is a very real argument to be made that professional athletes are overpaid. But all of us fans continue to tune in and watch them entertain us, the market and leagues adjust, salary caps seem to only go up, and players then earn more money. 

Fans showing up to WNBA games helps the cause and grows the sport, but when looking at the TV contracts and ratings, things are grim.

The WNBA's current TV media rights deal that expires at the end of 2025 makes roughly $60 million annually. For comparison’ sake, the NBA's current TV deal earns the league roughly $2.1 billion. That one example alone makes the situation abundantly clear as to just how small the WNBA, and the league's funds, are compared to the male side of hoops.

There is also the very important note that the WNBA is subsidized by the NBA, it is fully backed by the Association.

Caitlin Clark earning around $18,000 more than the average college graduate's starting salary in the U.S. may seem crazy, but that doesn't mean it isn't the reality.

Folks on X quickly made work of Wilson's tweet on Monday night:

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Mark covers all sports at OutKick while keeping a close eye on the world of professional golf. He graduated from the University of Tennessee-Chattanooga before earning his master's degree in journalism from the University of Tennessee. He somehow survived living in Knoxville despite ‘Rocky Top’ being his least favorite song ever written. Before joining OutKick, he wrote for various outlets including SB Nation, The Spun, and BroBible. Mark was also a writer for the Chicago Cubs Double-A affiliate in 2016 when the team won the World Series. He's still waiting for his championship ring to arrive. Follow him on Twitter @itismarkharris.