Essay Why WNBA Should Not Be Paid

Destiny Pettis

Mrs. Caffee

English I, Block 2

3 February 2017

Rough Draft In an average NBA season, a player will make 2.5 million dollars. (Gerencer). Women, on the other hand, make a considerable amount less. “As of 2014, the average salary of WNBA players stands at $72,000 per year, with the league minimum at $37,950 and the top salary at $107,000 for players who have been in the league for six years or more.” (“How Much Money Do WNBA Players Make?”). Women have been playing basketball alongside men since the beginning of basketball. They have played physical and hard games, just like men, but women are still paid incredibly low. Although WNBA players do not draw as large of crowds as men, women who play in the WNBA should be given an increase in the amount they are paid because women can be just as skilled as men who play basketball, and they are not paid enough despite being professional athletes. WNBA players deserve a higher paycheck because women who play professional basketball have the same skill and capability as men. For example, there have even been women drafted into the NBA because they had the same level of skill as NBA players. The first women to be drafted into the NBA without being denied admission by the league was Lucia Harris.

(Gerencer). Women in the WNBA work everyday to prove that they can be just as skilled as NBA players are, and that they deserve to paid a decent amount. Yet, they do not get the credit for their skills because they are considered to be boring to most people. These women deserve a paycheck that matches their abilities and efforts, not opinions on them. Thus, women who play professional basketball should have an increase in the amount they are paid because they do not get enough money despite their abilities, and the fact that they are playing at a professional