Posted on 01/01/2026 3:36:53 PM PST by nickcarraway
Taurasi wanted the WNBA to show the girls the money.
Diana Taurasi has been one of the WNBA’s most elite players for two decades. The problem was that she was never paid like one. That’s why the 2009 MVP hopes to see the best women’s basketball players receive the compensation they deserve when the next collective bargaining agreement takes effect.
“I always thought about I should’ve get paid for being the best basketball player in the world, not for doing social media or doing commercials,” Taurasi told Front Office Sports back in August. “That was one of the things I always had the most angst about. I don’t wanna do commercials, I don’t wanna be a spokeswoman for every product in the world.”
The gender pay gap in American basketball Taurasi was one of the most vocal proponents of raising WNBA players’ salaries. She lamented having to play overseas during the offseason to supplement her meager pay, claiming that the janitors made more money than she did.
For Taurasi, they needed to be paid because of their skills, just like their male counterparts.
“When I think of the NBA, Kobe got paid to be the best basketball player in the world. Jokic got paid to be the best basketball player in the world. I think we need to change that, shift into women’s basketball. Like, that’s what you are. Let’s get paid for that and hopefully, the next CBA can reflect that,” Taurasi continued.
For context, Kobe Bryant was the league’s highest-paid star for three seasons (2009-10, 2013-14, and 2014-15). He was the first player to secure a $30 million salary for a season, which occurred in the 2013-14 season. Interestingly, Nikola Jokic has never been the top-paid player, but he will earn over $55 million in 2025-26, just behind Stephen Curry’s $59.6 million.
According to Forbes in 2024, NBA players were paid substantially more than WNBA players. The average WNBA annual salary is $150,000, while the average NBA salary is nearly $10 million, roughly 67 times more.
While it’s true that the NBA reaches a worldwide audience compared to the WNBA, the previous CBA wasn’t helping the women’s crusade for better pay. WNBA players receive a much smaller percentage (around 10 percent) of the revenue. In comparison, NBA players receive 50 percent of the league’s revenue pie.
Of course, the counter-argument is that the NBA earns way more than the WNBA, and that is a fact. However, the latter is closing the gap little by little, with estimates projecting a revenue of around $1 billion in 2025, driven by superstars like Caitlin Clark, Angel Reese and others.
If the WNBA stars play their cards right in the CBA negotiations, the days of securing summer jobs abroad will be long gone.
View post: "They offered to pay me to rest" – Diana Taurasi explained her decision to sit out the 2015 WNBA season
What the WNBPA is looking for
It’s understandable why Taurasi (and many others) call out the lopsided revenue-sharing model of the past CBA. However, without a deal in sight in the near future, it looks like the process has done little to convince players that real progress has been made.
According to ESPN, “the WNBA’s latest proposal includes an uncapped revenue sharing model that would raise maximum salaries above $1.3 million (up from $249,244 in 2025) and growing to nearly $2 million over the life of the deal; average salaries to above $530,000 (up from $120,000 in 2025) and growing to more than $770,000 over the life of the deal; and minimum salaries to in excess of over a quarter of a million in the first year alone (up from $66,079 in 2025).”
Additionally, the union wants 30 percent of the gross revenue, while the league counters with 15 percent, roughly equivalent to one-half of the net revenue.
Although the negotiations are far apart, it’s already a step in the right direction. Regardless of the outcome, WNBA players can expect substantial pay raises and additional benefits from the revenue-sharing overhaul, whether it’s 30 or 15 percent of the gross income.
Taurasi will unfortunately no longer be there, having announced her retirement in February. Nonetheless, the scale of the new negotiations suggests the league can no longer ignore the standard that she pushed for.
“”She’s economically illiterate.””
From her statements, you can drop the “economically”....
An all too common affliction.. See Democrat voters. ;~))
Dear Diana, if you want to be paid like Kobe the answeris simple. Just make the WNBA as entertaining as the NBA as opposed to the snorefest it currently is.
Many years back the coach of the US Olympic Rowing team, a Polish bicyclist world champion named iirc, Chris Korzinowski was embroiled in whether or not USRowing (the parent organization) should organized as “Women’s light weight Eight” rowing team class to submit, again iirc, for the Olympics to enter a new competition class.
To quote Chris (again, iirc)— he said “ What is point... is like midget basketball, you never going to see them dunk— not possible!!”. The whole start of all this and the tranny crap is because of the existence of Title IX (again, iirc).
Heavyweight men’s eights, quads, pairs and men solo— and separately women’s whatever eights, quads pairs and solos for what it’s worth (not much competitively).
Very old stray memory.
Sweetie you paid for delivering butts into seats not for playing Bassaball.
Diana Taurasi needs to go harass women for them to start watching the WNBA. Until women watch the WNBA, it’s going nowhere.
he had gethereitis that morning selfish prick
The pilot should have paid more attention to his instruments, and less attention to the passengers.
All the WNBA players were economics majors in college, but were sick the day they taught economics.
Yes, women’s gymnastics and figure skating probably has more women audience than the WNBA.
Women’s downhill skiing definitely has more of an audience than the WNBA.
Which is why they are paid more.
I’ve heard of Kobe. Never heard of her.
Is there crying in basketball?
I would bet that every single G League player (the NBA's minor league) is better than she is, and she made more than most of them. If she was paid based on her talent, she would have earned less. If she was paid based on revenue she generated, even less.
The WNBA players are trying to seize on increased revenue created by Caitlin Clark's popularity to negotiate a new deal. That bump in revenue will quickly fade, and the new deal will just accelerate the eventual bankruptcy of the league. Hell, even with the CC revenue bump, the league is still losing money.
Another delusional woman high on copium. She’s not even in the top 10,000.
She needs to take her undersized ball and go home.
Williams sisters didn’t help.
That’s when I quit watching.
And entitled.
Don’t forget entitled.
Here’s a game I would pay to see...
The NBA’s best vs the WNBA’s best.
Come on, ladies. How about it. Put your money where your mouths are.
Yep, Taurasi the best basketball player in the world, if you ignore that your average men’s college basketball player would wipe the floor with her.
Fill the seats and get those big dollar ads ... then your pay will rise.
Who?
Never have heard of this person..... And she wants millions? Go join the NBA then.
“If she is dead, I don’t know anyone who noticed”
Her wife might, shock, Diana Taurasi is a lesbian.
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