Dick Vitale Doesn't Hold Back After WNBA Players' Salary Demand
Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content.
It's no secret that WNBA players are hoping to leverage the league (and Caitlin Clark's) popularity to negotiate higher salaries in their next collective bargaining agreement.
The message was also sent loud and clear during Saturday's All-Star Game at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, Indiana when players wore black shirts with a simple message printed across the front: "Pay Us What You Owe Us."
Fans also chanted "pay them" during warmups and when WNBA commissioner Cathy Englebert presented Minnesota Lynx forward Napheesa Collier with the game's MVP award as well.
"That was a powerful moment," Los Angeles Sparks guard Kelsey Plum said, via ESPN. "We didn't, at least as players, we didn't know that was going to happen. So it was a genuine surprise. Those chants tonight, those signs, it just shows that as players, we are united, but the fans are united in believing what we're seeking."
Caitlin Clark #22 of the Indiana Fever and Sabrina Ionescu #20 of the New York Liberty wears a shirt saying "Pay us what you owe us" prior to the 2025 AT&T WNBA All-Star Game at...
Caitlin Clark #22 of the Indiana Fever and Sabrina Ionescu #20 of the New York Liberty wears a shirt saying "Pay us what you owe us" prior to the 2025 AT&T WNBA All-Star Game at Gainbridge Fieldhouse on July 19, 2025 in Indianapolis, Indiana. MoreMore WNBA: Chicago Sky Send Clear Message to Angel Reese After All-Star Game
This all happened two days after a group of players met with league officials in the latest round of CBA negotiations, which several players agree didn't yield the kind of progress they'd like to have seen regarding the salary range they are hoping to get into.
The Team Collier and Team Clark (Caitlin Clark's team) All-Stars agreed hours before tipoff on Saturday that a statement needed to be made, and they decided that during one of, if not the league's most-watched games of the year with a sold-out capacity crowd of 16,988 fans was the place to do it.
And while an increase to the WNBA wage scale has been a hotly debated topic since Clark entered the league last season as the No. 1 overall pick, sports media pundits haven't been afraid to weight in.
ESPN college basketball analyst Dick Vitale has been an outspoken supporter of Clark, and on Sunday morning he took to social media to make his stance on the situation known.
"Since the arrival of @CaitlinClark22 the @WNBA's growth has been fantastic (Ticket sales - TV ratings) - the players are so UNDERPAID ! They DESERVE a big increase!" Vitale wrote on X.
Since the arrival of @CaitlinClark22 the @WNBA 's growth has been fantastic (Ticket sales - TV ratings ) - the players are so UNDERPAID ! They DESERVE a big increase!@ESPNPR via @ESPN App https://t.co/NoL5sNRSvH — Dick Vitale (@DickieV) July 20, 2025
More WNBA: Paige Bueckers Makes WNBA History During 2025 All-Star Game
This isn't the first time Vitale has drawn attention to Clark's impact on the WNBA. He told Front Office Sports nearly three weeks ago that he believes Clark is responsible
"What she has done to help the WNBA has been unbelievable," Vitale said. "Think about it. PR excitement. Ticket sales. TV Ratings and interest. Salary increases. More charter flights than the past. Plus, she is so exciting to watch."
Vitale has called Clark "the best thing to happen to the WNBA," pointing to the surge in the league's television ratings, merchandise sales, and public recognition since Clark's arrival.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Washington Post
an hour ago
- Washington Post
Olivia Miles decided to skip WNBA draft and stay in college for one more season
Olivia Miles might have been playing this weekend along with WNBA rookie Paige Bueckers at the league's All-Star Game. But Miles decided to return to college this year instead of going to the WNBA draft as a projected lottery pick. The former Notre Dame star transferred to TCU to try to improve her game, earn some extra NIL money and continue to grow her brand. 'I think it was a mixture of me listening to my body and what I needed and also just another year to develop, you know be in a system where it'll favor me and I'll have great teammates and a great coach around me,' Miles told The Associated Press. 'I'll have a lot of fun so I'm just very excited for that.' Miles missed the 2023-24 season while recovering from an ACL tear she suffered in the regular-season finale the year before to end her sophmore campaign. She became the first men's or women's freshman to post a triple-double in the NCAA Tournament in 2022, and was putting the final touches on a season that had made her an Associated Press second-team All-American when she crashed to the baseline after her right knee buckled on a drive at Louisville in 2023. 'I just felt like I had a lot more left in me in the tank,' she said. 'Being far, far removed from my injury, mentally, physically, emotionally, was what I was telling myself, so, it was a lot of back and forth.' Miles said she literally waited until the last minute to decide what she wanted to do, something she'd love to see the WNBA change in the future. 'I didn't decide until the very end, as you know, we have 48 hours to make a huge life decision, which is really hard,' Miles said. One thing she's happy about when she does enter the WNBA next season is that there will be a new collective bargaining agreement that should include an increase in player salaries. Right now the rookie salary is about $75,000 for top picks. She'll make a lot more than that in college this year. The low salaries were one factor in Miles' decision, but she said it wasn't a major one. Then when she decided to stay in school, Miles made another big choice to enter the transfer portal and leave Notre Dame. 'I knew it was gonna be a big story. I knew it was gonna (upset) a lot of people,' she said. 'I knew it was gonna cause a lot of commotion, but I ultimately was selfish one time with my career. I was talking to a bunch of power schools and then ultimately I really just wanted to go somewhere where I'd be able to showcase my abilities the best that I can.' Miles didn't get into specifics on why she decided to leave Notre Dame, but did say it was hard to tell Irish coach Niele Ivey that she was leaving. 'I was her first recruit so there was always a special kind of connection there, so when you have to have a hard conversation about people you care about, it's tough, but it had to be done,' Miles said. 'I didn't want her to find out, apart from me, so I had to grow up in that moment we had the conversation and we kept it going.' Miles said that Ivey reassured her that she'd 'always be a part of the family and that she loves me. I'm doing what's best for me, she's doing what's best for her so there's always respect there from my end.' She said she liked a lot of what TCU has done the last few years under coach Mark Campbell. 'I won't be restricted anywhere, I'll be able to kind of flow and have fun and really showcase before I get to the league,' she said. ___ AP WNBA:
2 hours ago
MLS commissioner discusses season shift, Messi absence before All-Star game
Major League Soccer Commissioner Don Garber says the league continues to look at shifting to a fall-to-spring season, saying he'd 'rather get it right and take our time than get it wrong and do it quick.' Garber spoke before Wednesday night's MLS All-Star game in Austin, Texas. He also spoke about the league's Apple TV streaming deal and the sale of the Vancouver Whitecaps in his state of the league address before the game. While he was peppered with questions about the calendar, looming large over the match between MLS and Liga MX All-Stars was the absence of Inter Miami star Lionel Messi. Currently MLS plays a spring-to-late fall season. A shift to align the league with its international counterparts would make MLS teams more competitive in the player transfer market, while also freeing up players for national team duty during the summer, when many major global tournaments take place. But there are obvious challenges, like weather. 'Making this change is seismic. It's not something we should do lightly. We obviously have teams across multiple climate zones, multiple time zones, unlike any other league in the world, and if we do make the change, we're not going to go back on that decision," Garber said. The MLS Board of Governors announced in April that it was giving further consideration to the shift, but gave no timeline. Garber suggested there would be an announcement by the end of the year. Garber declined to say whether Messi or Inter Miami teammate Jordi Alba would face suspension for missing the All-Star game, as league rules have dictated in the past. Miami's next match is Saturday against FC Cincinnati in Fort Lauderdale. The Whitecaps announced in December that the team was for sale. Greg Kerfoot has been owner of the club since 2002, when it was part of the North American Soccer League. Steve Luczo, Jeff Mallett and former NBA star Steve Nash joined Kerfoot in 2008, and the Whitecaps became part of MLS in 2011. Garber said there are no plans to move the club, although the Whitecaps need a new stadium. Currently, Vancouver plays at the multi-purpose BC Place, which is also the home of the BC Lions of the Canadian Football League. As for the league's streaming deal with Apple, Garber said MLS is working with the company to provide fans greater access. Distribution through cable and satellite services this season has helped. Metrics for viewership have been hard to come by because there's no system to determine exactly how people are 'viewing and consuming' games via a subscription service, Garber said. But he revealed that there have been 120,000 unique viewers per match and vowed greater transparency going forward.
Yahoo
3 hours ago
- Yahoo
New York plays Phoenix, seeks 5th straight home win
Phoenix Mercury (15-8, 9-7 Western Conference) at New York Liberty (16-6, 10-2 Eastern Conference) New York; Friday, 7:30 p.m. EDT BOTTOM LINE: New York Liberty will try to keep its four-game home win streak alive when the Liberty play Phoenix Mercury. The Liberty have gone 11-2 in home games. New York is the leader in the Eastern Conference with 14.4 fast break points. The Mercury are 6-4 on the road. Phoenix is third in the Western Conference scoring 83.2 points per game and is shooting 43.1%. New York makes 45.4% of its shots from the field this season, which is 2.8 percentage points higher than Phoenix has allowed to its opponents (42.6%). Phoenix averages 83.2 points per game, 3.8 more than the 79.4 New York gives up to opponents. The two teams match up for the third time this season. The Mercury defeated the Liberty 106-91 in their last matchup on June 28. Satou Sabally led the Mercury with 25 points, and Breanna Stewart led the Liberty with 17 points. TOP PERFORMERS: Stewart is scoring 19.6 points per game with 6.7 rebounds and 4.0 assists for the Liberty. Sabrina Ionescu is averaging 14.1 points and 5.7 assists over the last 10 games. Sabally is averaging 18.8 points and 7.3 rebounds for the Mercury. Alyssa Thomas is averaging 15.1 points over the last 10 games. LAST 10 GAMES: Liberty: 6-4, averaging 85.3 points, 33.7 rebounds, 21.6 assists, 8.0 steals and 5.0 blocks per game while shooting 44.1% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 83.2 points per game. Mercury: 6-4, averaging 87.6 points, 35.7 rebounds, 22.5 assists, 7.9 steals and 3.3 blocks per game while shooting 44.2% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 82.9 points. INJURIES: Liberty: None listed. Mercury: Monique Akoa Makani: out (concussion). ___ The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.
