Caitlin Clark a shoo-in for WNBA Rookie of the Year but meagre award bonus is in keeping with her paltry professional contract

Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese have revolutionized women’s basketball since entering the WNBA earlier this year.

The longtime college rivals have had an unprecedented impact on the league’s popularity and have been the two standout Rookie of the Year candidates all season long with a series of record-breaking performances.

Chicago Sky forward Reese set the single-season record for rebounding but recently announced she will miss the remainder of the campaign after suffering a “season ending injury.”

For many fans, sharpshooting phenom Clark was already the runaway favorite for Rookie of the Year.

But with Reese no longer active and four games of the regular season still to play, it appears Indiana Fever superstar Clark has all but wrapped up the award.

However, if you thought Rookie of the Year honors had a financial incentive, you’d be wrong.

Per the WNBA’s Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA), the Rookie of the Year receives a bonus of just $5,150.

They also receive an additional $1,500 bonus for being named to the All-WNBA Rookie Team.

That meagre bonus is in keeping with Clark’s paltry professional contract which she signed after being selected No. 1 overall in April’s WNBA Draft.

Clark will make just $76,535 for her first pro season, according to Spotrac.

That number barely increases in year two to $78,066.

Clark doesn’t top $100,000 during her four-year deal, and her peak would be $97,582 in 2027, which has an option attached.

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The NBA’s Rookie of the Year doesn’t receive a bonus for the award, but that hardly matters given the monster contracts they are on.

San Antonio Spurs sensation Victor Wembanyama made $12 million more than Clark last season during his rookie campaign.

The Spurs signed Wemby to a four-year, $55.2 million rookie contract when he was drafted in 2023, the largest possible deal under the US league’s current labor agreement.

While more needs to be done to close the gap, Clark still stands to make millions through endorsements.

She made an estimated $3.4 million from Name, Image and Likeness (NIL) deals in college at Iowa while breaking the all-time NCAA scoring record.

The 22-year-old has since secured lucrative endorsement deals with many companies including Nike, Gatorade, State Farm, Wilson, Panini America, Xfinity and Gainbridge.

Nobody would refute Clark being the 2024 WNBA Rookie of the Year.

She recently broke the league’s single-season record for most three-pointers by a rookie. Clark is now up to 111 makes from beyond the arc this season, having previously surpassed Rhyne Howard’s record of 85 in a rookie year.

Clark also broke the record for most assists in a game when she dished out 19 dimes against the Dallas Wings.

She’s also the first WNBA rookie to record a triple-double (she has two) and tied the all-time record for most threes in a single game (seven) by a rookie in WNBA history.

The former Hawkeye has also won three straight Player of the Week honors – no rookie in either the WNBA or NBA had ever been Player of the Week for three straight weeks until recently.

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Clark’s on-court impact has also had a profound effect on the Fever’s fortunes.

Before Clark in their previous 83 games, the Fever had won just 18 total games. Since drafting Clark in just 36 games, they have won 19 games.

Indy are also 6th in the WNBA standings with a 19-17 record, heading to the postseason for the first time since 2016.

Last season they were one of the worst team’s in the W and finished the season 10th in the standings with a 13-27 record. That means they’re 16 games better off this season with Clark at the helm, with four games still to play.

Clark has been on a tear since the All-Star break. She’s put up 24.7 points, 9.3 assists, and 5.8, rebounds per game on 45.9 percent shooting in the ten games, eight of which the Fever have won.

Now, fans have accepted the Rookie of the Year award is done and dusted and suggested Clark might also be in with an outside chance of winning MVP.

The only time that has ever happened came in 2008 when Candace Parker won Rookie of the Year and MVP in her debut season with the Los Angeles Sparks.

Las Vegas Aces and Team USA Olympic gold medallist A’ja Wilson is the current favorite to win MVP, having won the award the last two seasons.

But anything could happen with four regular season games still to go and Clark breathing down her neck.