WNBA's Collective Bargaining Agreement Could Double Players' Salaries

By Steve Goldstein
Published: Wednesday, January 15, 2020 - 11:41am
Updated: Wednesday, January 15, 2020 - 1:41pm

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Brittney Griner Phoenix Mercury WNBA
Landon Brown/Cronkite News
Phoenix Mercury center Brittney Griner poses with a fan in 2019.

The WNBA began playing games in 1997 and its popularity has remained pretty consistent. What has also been consistent is the relatively low average salary.

Unlike in the NBA, where stars are able to earn 20 times as much as their teammates, the top WNBA players were maxed out at $117,500 a year. Starting salaries are $50,000.

On Tuesday, a new collective bargaining agreement was announced that will nearly double the average salary and, potentially, keep players from having to play overseas to earn more.

With The Show to talk about the deal is Mechelle Voepel, who covers the WNBA for ESPN.com.

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