Caitlin Clark’s ridiculous talent and heroics has gifted sports media with another news cycle, which means that folks who rarely talk about or cover women’s basketball are discussing the Iowa superstar.
It all started late Tuesday night, when Clark drained an absurd logo 3-pointer at the buzzer for a win over Michigan State. And yes, Clark’s shot did go off before the buzzer sounded, despite arguments from doubters. Afterwards, Clark was – as we’ve often seen from her in postgame interviews this season – incredibly gracious and humble, soaking it all in as she continues to chase the all-time scoring record.
On Wednesday, Clark’s name predictably popped up on the scrolling side bar on many of ESPN’s talking head shows, including the show that originated that genre, “Pardon The Interruption.”
Now, on one hand, it’s great that women’s college basketball is being talked about on a show with an audience as big as PTI’s as the sport continues to grow among casual sports fans.
On the other hand, when the conversation turns into “THE PAY CUT THAT SHE’S GOING TO HAVE TO TAKE TO GO TO THE WNBA …” that is detrimental to the growth of the sport. Because it isn’t true.
Here’s the full clip, where Tony Kornheiser prefaces that belief with, “I am probably speaking stupidity here when I say this.”
So many things I want to say from this segment I don’t have enough characters
1) @IowaWBB is selling out every home game, MORE than the men, not “about as many as the men”
2) Caitlin will not take a “massive pay cut” in the WNBA, she will continue to have massive brand deals pic.twitter.com/g3WAacWuah— Bri Lewerke (@brilewerke) January 3, 2024
Indeed, this is a belief that is not based on reasonable thought.
Still, there is a widely-spread misconception existing that women’s college basketball players will not take their endorsement deals – made possible in college through the Name, Image and Likeness (NIL) law – with them when they become professionals in the WNBA.
And when people say that, we should ask them, why?
Why would national brands that endorse Clark now – such as State Farm, Gatorade, Nike, Buick, Topps, H&R Block, and the supermarket chain Hy-Vee – end their relationships with her when she (probably) gets drafted this spring by the Indiana Fever?
The fact is, they likely won’t.
She will still be a household name with more than 825,000 followers on Instagram, and her profile could grow even more should Iowa make another Final Four run or if she competes in the Olympics this summer.
Those brands are more than likely going to stick with Clark, continue to back her and continue to reap the rewards from endorsing an athlete of her caliber. Gatorade has already committed to this, as its deal with Clark is a multi-year one. In a statement announcing a partnership with Clark, State Farm Chief Marketing Officer Kristyn Cook said, “We can’t wait to drive progress forward together with Caitlin for years to come.”
So, no, Clark – or any other women’s basketball star with national NIL deals, from Deja Kelly to Paige Bueckers – won’t be taking a pay cut. The reality is that, whenever Clark decides to enter the WNBA, she’ll be making even more money. Because Iowa isn’t paying her to play basketball. Those national endorsement deals will come with her to the pros, and she’ll combine that with a rookie salary of at least $74,000.
Oh, and one more correction for PTI co-host Michael Wilbon: Iowa’s women’s team is drawing much more fans than the men, not “about as many.” Clark and her crew are drawing an average attendance of 14,998 fans per game, which leads the Big Ten by a margin of nearly 6,000. The Iowa men average 9,263 fans per game, which is 10th in the league.
There is no question of which ticket is hotter. That was proved back in October when more than 55,000 showed up to watch the Hawkeyes play an outdoor exhibition at Kinnick Stadium. As long as Clark continues to draw crowds like that, she’ll have a plethora of endorsement deals to choose from for a long time.
