Since the new CBA deal has come into effect, the player salaries have risen exponentially high, and the top three draft picks this year, which include a certain Azzi Fudd, have experienced it firsthand. That was not even the case a year ago when prodigious Paige Bueckers got drafted, and during Caitlin Clark’s time, it was more so an afterthought. That’s the crux of the issue, according to Chantel Jennings on The Athletic’s Women’s Basketball Show
“They’re also having these players that are on rookie scale contracts, which is sort of like a budget option, and when you have players like Caitlin Clark is worth far more, Aliyah Boston worth far more, Paige Bueckers, worth far more than what they are getting paid underneath the salary cap.”
And so, like I think that’s really important when we look at teams like Indiana, like when two of your three best players are still on your rookie scale contracts, what kind of financial freedom that allows you as you sort of fill in the rest,” says Jennings, giving her unfiltered perspective on the matter.
Jennings is true in her analogy. The discrepancy between what they have now and what they had prior is enough to gauge how far women’s basketball has come ever since getting the new CBA deal locked in. Players like Clark, Boston, and Bueckers generate millions in ticket sales, TV ratings, and sponsorships, but earn only a fraction of that under the cap. That is peanuts compared to what Fudd and company will make in terms of the actual contract.
The financial disparity is stark: while a top rookie like Azzi Fudd will earn a $2.2M contract, established stars like Caitlin Clark, Aliyah Boston, and Paige Bueckers remain locked into the old rookie scale, earning just $76,535 per year despite their immense drawing power.
Needless to say, now that teams like Fever and the Wings also enjoy the luxury of adding veterans and role players into the mix without having to worry about a huge financial burden, that makes things a whole lot easier.
In fact, this season can turn out to be a walk in the park if Caitlin can stay healthy all season, and that is making the Fever coach Stephanie White hopeful.
Stephanie White Divulges the Plan Ahead With Clark
The 2025 season for Caitlin Clark didn’t exactly go the way as planned. What started off as an incredible campaign was reduced to shambles when CC had to miss multiple games with soft-tissue injuries. A right groin injury compounded by a bone bruise nearly kept her out of action for 8 months.
But now she is back after going through strenuous rehabilitation, she looks better than ever, and that is enough to make the Indiana coach Stephanie White hopeful.
“She has worked her butt off this whole offseason to prepare herself. We have an added advantage in that she played games in March with USA basketball. And so she has game exposure. She has game pace. She has game rhythm.”
I had hoped to share a better update, but I will not be returning to play this season. I spent hours in the gym every day with the singular goal of getting back out there, disappointed isn’t a big enough word to describe how I am feeling. I want to thank everyone who had my back… pic.twitter.com/paD5sEYG1q
— Caitlin Clark (@CaitlinClark22) September 5, 2025
“She has game timing. And so we have an advantage. But we also want to be smart. She doesn’t need every rep in practice. We want to continue to ramp her up. It’s a long season. 44 games and we play a heavy cadence of games in a week,” said White, mapping the road ahead.
Caitlin has been active before the upcoming season. She made her senior national team debut for Team USA in San Juan, Puerto Rico, in March for the FIBA Women’s World Cup Qualifying Tournament, and while doing so, she led Team USA to a 5-0 record, while also winning the tournament’s Most Valuable Player award along the way.
But even then, White believes that overdoing things now won’t help. One has to tread cautiously; that caution is amplified when the player returning from a litany of injuries is your superstar, Caitlin Clark.
Fever can definitely hope to be a lot more effective now that Clark is back in the picture, and with Indiana also adding some sharp new players to their roster, like rookie Raven Johnson, Justine Pissott, and veterans like Monique Billings, you can rest assured that they will go all out hunting for a title after being knocked out by the eventual champions Las Vegas Aces in the semifinals.
