WNBA Pay

[Jennifer]

I know this was touched on in another thread; Swok commented on the pay of the players based on draft order.
However, in this article about mostly Sue Bird (and Stacy Dales-Schuman is briefly mentioned), it says
"They discuss their first pay checks — rookies get $32,000 a season.
"Direct deposit," Cash says as Bird walks out. "That's what I'm gonna do."

Swok, I'm not trying to contradict you--I'm just curious about the contradiction? Does the pay scale you mentioned go into effect following the rookie season? Just curious....of course, I know the person who wrote this article could be completely wrong.
http://www.nydailynews.com/2002-04-20/Metro_Sports/Basketball/a-148265.asp

[This message has been edited by Jennifer (edited 04-21-2002).]

[dem]

Here is an article that says:

The veteran minimum salary for 2002 is $40,000, but all 16 first-round draft picks will make more than that, up to $57,500 for the top four picks. The rookie minimum is $30,000 for 2002.
http://www.azcentral.com/sports/mercury/0909wnba.html

For a comparison, here is what Iowa State's star point guard Jamaal Tinsley received upon being drafted in the NBA first round and traded to the Indiana Pacers:

Tinsley, acquired from draft night as part of what was technically a three-team trade involving Vancouver and Atlanta, signed a three-year, $2.013 million contract. He will earn $624,300 as a rookie followed by salaries of $671,000 in '02-03 and $718,000 in '03-04. The team will have options for the following two years, at $1.288 million in '04-05 and $1.932 million in '05-06, so the total value of the contract could reach $5.233 million over five years.
http://www.nba.com/pacers/news/tinsley_signs_010718.html

[swok34]

Thanks, dem.......I was looking for the information in the article you posted, I knew they were going to be voting on something back last fall and couldn't remember the particulars. I'll ask the folks over at the WNBA board what happened.

A majority of WNBA players are scheduled to meet today in New York to vote on reopening negotiations with the league a year before the expiration of their first collective bargaining agreement

I was watching the local newscast Friday nite and they were talking about Stacey, Laneisha and Rosalind, also mentioned Mandy since she is an Oklahoma girl......but the newscaster asked the sports guy, Bob Barry...how much they would make? He responded that NBA rookies average around a million ?(I think)...and he suspected the WNBA rookies would make about half that....hahahahaha...I emailed him and let him know how much they DO MAKE.

By the way, did everyone read the article Jennifer posted.....Do they teach media relations at Connecticut? I've lost faith to some degree in Linn Dunn.....just reading an article in the Washington Post about Stacey and how Pat Summitt told her they wanted her all along and Linn was the one calling Washington for trades, not the other way around.....not to say that New York didn't desperately seek a trade......after reading some of Sue Bird's comments, I don't care for her as much as I have previously.

[OhMandy]

swok34 I'm wondering why you feel like this: "after reading some of Sue Bird's comments, I don't care for her as much as I have previously."

What comments? Just wondering. Not trying to start anything.

I've always found Sue to be a very nice person and she gives her teammates all the credit and has total respect for players on the other team.

[swok34]

I didn't get the impression that Seattle was where Bird wanted to go. And perhaps my statement wasn't fair, there's no doubt that Bird was probably very nervous. I know that reporters tend to slant things said.....I've always liked Bird, too. I was just a little surprised at her "media-ability", because she's had to have been in front of the camera, like a zillion times, right?
And, then again, maybe I'm spoiled on Stacey Dales, who majored in broadcasting......so I've probably made a very unfair comparison.

Can you say the words 'Seattle fans' in your answer this time," the guy behind the camera asks.

Passing through the hospitality tent, Bird sees her other roommate, Asjha Jones, on TV. "She goes to Washington, too?" Bird asks. "She's lucky, too."

"I guess the fans there can expect a point guard that will do
whatever the team needs me to do. Except dunk, I can't be
expected to do that

"I call her Coach Dunn, right? I can't just say 'Hey, is Lin there?,'"Bird jokes. "Should I thank her for picking me?"
"Oh, oh, oh hi, Coach Dunn? This is Sue Bird," she says.

[OhMandy]

I still don't see anything bad or wrong about her comments. It's not like she said I hate Seattle and I don't want to play there. Oh well everybody can read the same quotes/article and come away with a different idea.