This Is What a Real W Looks Like

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This Is What a Real W Looks Like

What's going on: WNBA players just took home a prize more valuable than a league championship: a contract that begins to take their worth seriously. Veteran superstars can now sign deals starting at $1.4 million and the projected average sits just under $600K. For context, four-time MVP A'ja Wilson earned a roughly $200K salary last season. A new expected supermax deal would push that to $1.4 million per year. That’s around a 500% raise. The next MVP bonus goes from just over $15K to $60K too. The full contract goes beyond the paycheck and includes charter flights, housing for all players until 2029, and salary cap exception for injured and pregnant players. The league now requires a pregnant player's consent before any trade. Why? Because of this drama. Yes, really.

Our take: The deal is transformational — but we’d also call it a correction. Retired WNBA legend Diana Taurasi called it “life-changing” for players. She once said that the WNBA was for love, but if players wanted to make money, they had to go to Europe (others have compared it to a summer job). Cameron Brink said the private chef she hired to fuel her performance cost more than what she earned in the WNBA. This deal will likely change that. Some, like the StudBudz, could become be the first millionaires in their families — the contract offers players (and their loved ones) a path toward generational wealth. But there’s room for more. LeBron James's son — who didn’t see regular play — will still outearn A’ja Wilson’s expected max. So while we applaud this massive adjustment, this isn't the finish line — just the first real marker on the way there.

Related: How Much Will Caitlin Clark and Paige Bueckers Make Now? (NYT Gift Link)

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Bring on the Madness

The NCAA basketball tournament delivered enough drama this week to convert even casual fans. Iowa’s men's team took down reigning champs Florida on a buzzer-beater — from the same player who appeared to throw a punch earlier in the game. St. John’s is on the way to its first Sweet 16 since 1999. And Texas, an 11-seed that barely made the cut, has a very unusual pet on the sidelines. (Don’t ask, just believe.) On the women’s side: UConn’s Geno Auriemma gave Azzi Fudd courtside nail advice (the only man we’d allow) that actually worked. South Carolina coach Dawn Staley gifted an opponent Louis Vuitton perfume and then her team promptly dropped 103 points on them. Queen behavior. But the moment? Maryland’s head coach Brenda Frese got in star Oluchi Okananwa’s face with a pep talk so intense it gave us chills. (Even Okananwa agreed.) That alone deserves a dance. 

The Press Box

Fresh off of an Oscars performance that had everybody riveted, the boundary-breaking ballerina Misty Copeland joined theSkimm’s Well Played podcast to talk about it all. From the moment she took the stage with the Sinners performers to what she hopes audiences can learn and appreciate about ballet, our full conversation with the legendary artist covers it and you can watch that here. There’s a reason she’s the best in the world — barre none.

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No Notes

Skimmed by Mallory Simon and Kylie McConville. Fact-checked by Jordan Mamone.