“I just hope y’all know the WNBA don’t pay my bills at all. I don’t even think that pays one of my bills,” Reese said on Instagram live this week. Her salary stands at $73,439. “Does that even pay my car note?” Reese jokingly asked. 

Doing some quick math, Reese disclosed that she pays $8,000 monthly for rent, which comes out to $96,000 annually. “I’m living beyond my means like y’all think,” she said, laughing. While Reese’s lifestyle might be unaffordable for most Americans, her story highlights the disparity within the sports world. 

Interest in the WNBA has skyrocketed as of late, a phenomenon in part attributed to rookies such as Reese and the Indiana Fever’s Caitlin Clark. Some tune in for those dynamics alone. “People watch for compelling content and rivalries,” WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert said on 60 Minutes. 

Even so, this rising popularity has yet to fully reach the wallets of players. In the NBA, the top rookie of the current season will make around $12.6 million and the final pick will make a still hefty $2.5 million, according to Sports Illustrated. Clark, the first pick of this year’s WNBA draft, has a starting salary of $76,535.

“That WNBA check don’t pay a thing,” said Reese on her Instagram Live. Her endorsements are really what make a difference, as Reese called her check “a bonus” to her other streams of income when speaking to ESPN.

Legendary former basketball player Sue Bird said at the Fortune Most Powerful Women Summit that “the money is around the corner,” mentioning that women’s leagues have signed massive media deals. “I pretty much lost money playing in the WNBA,” she said, mentioning inflation.

Where WNBA stars actually make their money

All-star athletes are forced to find other means to afford their lifestyle by padding their salaries. Many turn to making deals that use their likeness. Reese, for instance, worked with brands from Goldman Sachs to Reebok and Airbnb in college. These partnerships were valued at $1.8 million in total by On3.

Reese also plans to participate in a three-on-three league called Unrivaled, a choice she made in part to make extra money without having to travel globally. “Nobody wants to go overseas,” she said this summer.

“For a long time, a lot of us had to play overseas, but really, recently, you’ve been able to make money off the court,” said Bird. Noting that in the last portion of her career she was able to make within the $250,000 range, Bird said she was stuck at the $100,000 bracket. 

Indeed, WNBA players having to play internationally became a hot-button issue last year when Brittney Griner was detained in Russia for nearly 10 months after being charged for having vape cartridges containing cannabis oil in her luggage. Griner only became caught in a political maneuver because she was looking to supplement her income.  

“The whole reason a lot of us go over is the pay gap,” she said in a press conference in 2023. “A lot of us go over there to make an income to support our families, to support ourselves.”