It’s the economy, stupid! – James Carville
I’d like to believe this country’s cheerful turn towards an infinite stupidity is the result of some heretofore undiagnosed form of long COVID. But alas! The sad reality is our collective IQ was headed directly into the Krapper long before the pandemic hit these halcyon shores.
Some people blame this shift on social media, but all Facebook’s done is expose what anyone with two working brain cells already knew – the masses have become convinced that ignorance truly is bliss.
The latest indication of this fascinating phenomenon is the absurd manner in which the sports talking heads, particularly the distaff variety, and the female population in general, are losing their shit over college basketball superstar Caitlin Clark’s WNBA $76,000 rookie salary. They say they’re beyond shocked and appalled that her meager remuneration amounts to just 0.6 percent of San Antonio Spurs’ center Victor Wembanyama’s $12.16 million first year pay.
Even Uncle Joe managed to wake up from his afternoon nap long enough to add:
Women in sports continue to push new boundaries and inspire us all. But right now, we’re seeing that even if you’re the best, women are not paid their fair share.
I hate to have to inform the Prez that, considering Wemby’s a generational talent who single-handedly lifted the Spurs from draft lottery laughing stock to likely 2025 playoff contenders, he’s a steal at that bargain basement price. The Suns’ Bradley Beal makes $47 million a year for the privilege of doing a heck of a lot worse in virtually every statistical category.
If that revelation doesn’t make those seething women’s heads explode then nothing will.
The truth is that Clark oughtta thank her lucky stars she’s playing professional basketball at all. Had she graduated in 1990, her only recourse would’ve been to head to Europe where even the men make a very un-NBA like average $110,000 a year – in 2023. Not to mention the WNBA would’ve gone bankrupt shortly after it started in1996 were it not for that annual $15 million NBA subsidy.
So, let’s abandon all the shrieking, howling, and rending of garments to explore these vastly disparate economies of scale.
The average WNBA ticket price is about $47, while the NBA gets $94 dollars a pop. The once abysmal average WNBA attendance improved to 6,600 fans in 2023, but it’s a far cry from the NBA’s 18,300. A whopping 12.4 million fans tuned into the 2022 NBA finals while the WNBA’s main event managed to muster a meager 412,000 viewers.
Add all of that up and the NBA reported an astonishing $10 BILLION in 2023 revenue, dwarfing the WNBA’s $200 million, which was a massive increase from an embarrassing $60 million the year before. So, what magical bottomless financial well is Clark’s gender equality $12 million salary supposed to come from?
But here’s the real kicker. In 2023, 11 percent of American men referred to themselves as “avid WNBA fans” while just 4 percent of their feminine counterparts could make the same claim. So, while those female pundits kvetched the loudest about the Clark/Wembanyama pay disparity, the truth is women don’t support the WNBA. As the Nielsen Ratings indicate, they’d much rather watch The Whorish Housewives of Plasticboob County.
So, why is it up to men to save their league?
It kills me to have to watch male sportscasters, most of whom know the fiscal score, sit there silently for fear of being canceled while their female counterparts bitch endlessly about the WNBA making complete fools of themselves with false equivalencies.
But the news ain’t all bad WNBA aficionados! As previously noted, the league’s revenue skyrocketed 233 percent in 2023. It’s the kind of thing that happens when attendance goes up and your viewership increases 21 percent. To make matters even better, Clark’s entry into the WNBA has had a profoundly positive effect on ticket prices and sales such that WNBA teams are looking for larger venues when she comes to town.
And ain’t that exactly how it’s supposed to work? Look at all the offshoot sports leagues that have popped up and disappeared in our lifetimes. It isn’t easy building a fanbase, a television audience, and the kind of excitement the NBA regularly generates, but with their male compatriots’ assistance, the WNBA seems to be on the right track.
And as they continue to make headway, those salaries will start going up.
While we’re at it, let’s not shed too many tears for Ms. Clark. Though her base pay isn’t all that scintillating, she’ll likely earn another $6 to $8 million a year in sponsorships. Nike already signed her for $3.5 million annually over the next eight years. As the great Charles Barkley said, “I don’t care what people think. People are stupid.” Well…he did say that, and it certainly applies here, but more importantly:
I might go my whole life stealing money. I got paid to play basketball, which is a scam. I get paid to watch basketball, which is a scam.
In other words, Sir Charles is beyond grateful he got a boatload of cash for playing a “kid’s game,” and he continues to get paid to comment on the sport. I’d happily take 20 grand a year to play centerfield for the Cubs (and I could do a lot better than Ian Happ, too).
Rome wasn’t built in a day my friends. To think that Ms. Clark should be getting the same starting salary as a similar star player in a league with a 50-year head start is the height of a vast self-inflicted stupidity. May the saints preserve us.
