Caitlin Clark, during her appearance as a special contributor on Basketball Night in America, was asked to weigh in on the new CBA deal. This comes after the WNBA officially ratified the new agreement this week, indicating that a league-wide change was on the horizon.

"Salary and revenue sharing. I think it’s as simple as that," Clark said when asked about the most revelatory part of the deal.

She continued, "I think it sets a precedent for all of women’s sports going forward, not just women’s basketball, that we’re truly valued and the product we put on the floor is truly valued. Just excited and really thankful for everybody — everybody on the WNBA side and everybody on the PA side."

Thanks to the new CBA, the WNBA salary cap is expected to jump nearly five times, and the average player salary is set to rise from $120,000 to around $600,000, something Caitlin Clark believes will benefit all female athletes.

Clark’s own numbers show just how big this change is. She earned $76,535 as a rookie in 2024 and $78,066 in 2025, with projections of $85,973 for 2026 before this new agreement.

Now, under the updated structure reported by ESPN’s Alexa Philippou, Caitlin Clark is expected to make about $530,000 in 2026 through the new EPIC provision, which rewards top-performing players early in their careers.

Moreover, because she has already made an All-WNBA team, her earnings could climb even higher, potentially reaching $1.3 million in 2027 and a $1.7 million supermax in 2028, marking a major moment for players across the league.

And if there were any doubts about how big this moment is, Clark’s latest appearance only reinforced it.

Caitlin Clark Gets Real About Women’s Sports Growth

Clark, during a recent Q&A session at Uber’s Women Change the Game event, was asked about the future of women’s sports.

“I think going forward, it's hard to say where women's sports specifically is going to be because a lot of people never thought that it could get to this moment that we're in. But I truly think this is just the beginning,” Caitlin Clark said.

She added, “I don't think it's just women's sports. I think it's the way women are valued across the world and what we can bring to the table... So, I'm really excited to see where things go.”

Caitlin Clark also touched on the new CBA, saying, “I think this is going to be a really special year. We just signed a new CBA in the W.”

The upcoming 2026 WNBA season will mark Clark's return to the W after she was sidelined by an injury in July 2025. The star hooper will be coming in fresh off her dominant, MVP-title-clinching run at the FIBA Qualifiers in Puerto Rico.

Caitlin Clark will return with the Fever on May 9 against the Dallas Wings.

Written by

Sauramita Debbarma

Edited by

Arvind Rao