Top 10 Lowest-Paid WNBA Players of All Time

The WNBA hails as a platform that has given excellent women’s basketball players to the world. However, the remuneration that players get for putting up such excellent performances is not still equal to its male counterpart league, the NBA. The league has even received much criticism over the years for the act. However, the primary reasons for the lower pay from the league have surfaced as marketing, revenue, and traction concerns. The WNBA does not draw the attention of the viewers as much as the NBA, and that’s why the pay disparity still continues.

However, the WNBA viewership surged to an all-time high in 2024, as per the record, hitting 54 million unique viewers across different broadcasting channels. Some senior players, Breanna Stewart and A’ja Wilson, are even earning from that fortune, but some of the players still fall in the least-paid category of the league. And it cannot change overnight as the monetary equations have evolved over time in league. Soon, the upcoming generation might earn better than even the seasoned players of the game if the league’s popularity continues to surge. The following piece on least-paid WNBA athletes will explore the players who were not earning big numbers before the viewership boom era and who are still not earning big numbers.

For a long time, WNBA players have been playing overseas in the offseason to add extra sum to their worth. It is a kind of supplemental role to fulfill the insufficient pay in the league and get a better monetary reward. However, today’s least-paid players might earn hefty contracts like their NBA counterparts if the league continues to evolve at the same rate. So, let’s look closer at the players who are currently the least-paid in the WNBA.

WNBA’s 5 Lowest Paid Players:

Shakira Austin

Shakira Austin, a WNBA rookie in 2022, has a chance to define her place as a decisive piece in the Washington Mystics’ vibrant forward line this season. This first-user rookie was brought in as a first-round draft pick and starts at $62,285, as that is the way it goes: most first-time players have a rookie scale contract. It’s a small salary, but according to her work, Austin will definitely land some huge endorsements and contracts in the future. Besides the court, Austin advocates for mental health awareness for athletes and aims to promote it even beyond the sporting field.

Emily Engstler

This defensive prodigy, Emily Engstler, is part of a collective happy unit of early first-round picks in the 2022 Draft. Yet she is bringing home an income that comes on the lower end of the league’s rookie salary ceiling. With her great defensive special capabilities and aggressiveness to disrupt opponents’ strategies, Engstler can also be expected to acquire a lengthy and prosperous career in the WNBA. Meanwhile, Engstler is honing her offensive skills while undergoing community service projects that inspire young girls to get involved in sports.

Christyn Williams

Christyn Williams is a promising talent coming out of UConn, but unfortunately, she’s facing some obstacles in her career with the WNBA. She is a great talent, but injuries have been a frequent hindrance to her abilities. A salary of $62,285 (Aljazeera), perhaps the norm for rookies, is a pity when one imagines the scale of her contributions to the game once entirely recovered. Williams is remaining positive, working through her injury recovery, and using college success to create opportunities for herself in coaching and media.

Evina Westbrook

With her guarding abilities, Evina Westbrook possesses a multifaceted talent around the rim. However, her remunerations are not equal to the numbers, performance, and impact on the court. Her contribution with her advocacy of mentoring others in the sport for inclusion makes her a role model for the younger and future athletes of the sport. Her ability to conceptualize the game with her artistic playmaking skills and defending techniques guarantees she will be on the team’s roster now and in the future, no matter how much she makes.

Destanni Henderson

Destanni Henderson is well known worldwide as a student-athlete with an impressive record. Over time, she is sure to double or even triple her worth by the time she gets her endorsement and future contracts since she stepped into the league with a salary of $62,285 but has gained a profile and performance enough to build her future further. Infinitely filled with her unique vibrancy and sporting ambition, Henderson has gotten a few hits at fashion endorsements with an athletic hat while doing it in her own style.

Here’s the full list of the 10 least-paid players in the WNBA:

Challenges and Future Outlook

While the WNBA has progressed in most aspects, like maximum salaries and marketing opportunities, there still exists a large gap between upper and lower-echelon players’ salaries. The gaps are much more significant in revenues relative to the league’s pool size, limiting the league’s capacity to offer high salaries in most instances. However, the indications towards increased media exposure, endorsements, and fan interactivity suggest an enhancement in the levels of such contracts, even for the poorest earning.

A lot of promise exists for the league, and an investment increase in women’s basketball should dramatically change things around within its salary structure. Fans push to have something like revenue-sharing structures found in the NBA, which would make a huge difference to practically every player’s income. Thus, this is the present measure of the determination and toughness of these athletes underpinning their path, inspiring fans and fellow competitors to elevate women’s basketball to its rightful prominence on the global stage.

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