After hanging 18 points on Florida Gulf Coast University in her triumphant debut at Galen Center in November, USC freshman guard JuJu Watkins strutted out of her first home press conference giggling about the price of her jersey — listed on Nike’s website for $90. 

As the No. 1 overall recruit with over $200,000 in multi-year name, image and likeness deals with multi-billion and -million dollar companies, Watkins is one of the first college basketball players ever to enter the NCAA having already reaped profits from jersey sales and endorsements.

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Watkins entered USC in the wake of a monumental wave of viewership and sponsorship in NCAA women’s basketball. In 2022, 51% of the Women’s NIL 100 were basketball players, and today, the combined valuation of the 10 highest-earning women’s basketball players exceeds seven million dollars.

Iowa senior guard Caitlin Clark has garnered national attention for her ability to translate fire and finesse on the court into cold hard cash. Clark has accumulated endorsements from Nike, Gatorade, Bose, Topps and more — she even has her own cereal brand.

Clark’s stardom took off in the 2023 Women’s March Madness Tournament and has continued to skyrocket throughout this season. At Iowa’s home opener, Clark attracted a record-setting 55,646 fans to the Hawkeyes’ Kinnick Stadium.

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Sellout crowds have continued to follow Clark, and on Jan. 2, in front of nearly 15,000 fans, the matriarch of the Midwest effortlessly hoisted up a game-winning triple from the half-court logo to put then-No. 4 Iowa over Michigan State. The shot sent social media into a frenzy and sports commentators were forced to address the reception and rewards of Clark’s exceptional collegiate career. 

“I am probably speaking stupidity here when I say this, but it’s probably based on at least reasonable thought. I think [Clark] should apply for a graduate year and play again. Because [of] the pay cut she’s going to have to take to go to [the] WNBA compared with the NIL money,” said Tony Kornheiser, co-host of ESPN’s “Pardon the Interruption.” “She fills that gym! Her money is worth it and must be fabulous, and the WNBA can’t give her that kind of money.” 

Kornheiser’s comments are rooted in an increasingly widespread ideology that women’s basketball players take a “pay cut” by leaving college for the pros. 

The naysayers of the WNBA are wrong. Yes, NIL deals are revolutionary for women’s sports. Legal endorsements allow college athletes to capitalize on their fame, athleticism and contributions to their universities from an early age. They are especially important for women’s sports that do not have sustainable professional leagues for players who wish to continue and profit from their athletic careers post-graduation. 

However, in women’s basketball, the best players do not face a four-year cap on their profitability. The value of WNBA players in the public eye is not lost the moment they can take home a reliable check and call sports their “profession.”

“I think people don’t understand NIL, it’s still kind of a thing when you get into pro sports. You still have all those endorsements, you still have sponsorships,” Clark said in an interview on “The Dan Patrick Show.” “You’re basically just a professional athlete with that on top of it. It’s not really something I would factor into my decision of staying [in college] or going [to the WNBA] too much.”

Clark is right. WNBA players receive endorsements in addition to a baseline salary — college athletes do not receive a salary. The WNBA also offers full pay, housing and childcare subsidies for players on maternity leave. The league’s dynamic is built for women and to make women’s basketball a professional career — the entire point is to ensure that players can maximize the profitability of their on-court performance for as long as they can compete. 

In terms of having the opportunity to grow their fame and fortune, Clark has over 878,000 followers on Instagram and nearly 171,000 followers on X, formerly known as Twitter. These figures are expected to increase when she enters the WNBA, as the most prominent professional players boast over 1 million and 300,000 followers on each of the respective platforms.

New York Liberty guard Sabrina Ionescu overtook sports media throughout her career at Oregon. Despite her national prominence in college, Ionescu’s social media following has doubled since entering the WNBA Draft in 2020.

Even with the existence of NIL deals when she was in college, Indiana Fever center and forward Aliyah Boston — the No. 1 overall pick of the 2023 WNBA Draft — signed the most lucrative endorsement contract of her young career with Adidas, in addition to her annual salary, following her induction into the WNBA.

There is another angle related to this argument. Misconceptions regarding the financial opportunities for WNBA players may arise because of the limited resources in women’s professional sports versus NCAA Division I athletic programs. Women’s basketball is the hallmark of many well-funded universities, such as the University of South Carolina and the University of Connecticut, thus the “professionalism,” infrastructure and resources at the collegiate level appear to exceed that of the WNBA.

But the WNBA is entering a new era of investment and marketability. Super teams in Las Vegas and New York, new state-of-the-art team facilities, coaches like Becky Hammon departing the NBA for WNBA coaching roles and fresh marketing strategies are transforming the outlook for the future of the league. 

With that being said, NCAA players do not take a “pay cut” when they enter the WNBA. And, if the league continues to receive the respect and advocacy it deserves, then becoming a professional women’s basketball player will not demand compromise.