John Locher / Associated Press
Las Vegas Aces center A’ja Wilson (22) reacts as she wears the 2023 championship ring before a WNBA basketball game Tuesday, May 14, 2024, in Las Vegas.
Published Saturday, May 18, 2024 | 4:27 p.m.
Updated Saturday, May 18, 2024 | 7:25 p.m.
The WNBA is determining whether the Las Vegas Visitors and Conventions Authority can sponsor players on the Las Vegas Aces roster for $100,000 apiece.
Steve Hill, the president and CEO of the tourism authority, labeled the deal as “a first-of-its-kind sponsorship deal” and said “it creates a win for them and a win for our destination.”
The Aces are the back-to-back league champions and immensely popular in Southern Nevada, selling out 15 of their 20 home games, the most in WNBA history. They also sold all of their season ticket allotment.
The average league salary is $120,000 and rookies only early $70,000, meaning $100,000 per player is a significant bump.
The sponsorship does not violate the WNBA’s salary cap because the Las Vegas authority did not orchestrate it with the club. But other teams likely were raising questions about the fairness of the sponsorship and whether it violates the spirit of the cap rules.
“I’m going to put it to you real simple,” Aces coach Becky Hammon said after the Aces beat the Sparks on Saturday. “Most sponsorship people go after the top two people…From what I understand is that they (LVCVA) wanted the whole team. They went and called individual agents. I don’t know the details. I have nothing to do with it. The agents don’t have anything to do with it. It’s just odd, but that’s basically what happened.”
Team leader A’ja Wilson said she’s grateful “to be in a franchise in a city that constantly wants more out of us.”
Wilson, one of the best players in the WNBA, has been vocal about the pay disparity between the NBA and the WNBA. She also advocated for WNBA teams to travel on charter flights — which is finally happening this season after 27 years of traveling to road games on commercial flights.
“We’re talking about growing the game and when we’re talking about taking that next step, it can’t always be investigated,” Wilson said. “We’re trying to move the needle. We’re trying to make things better for franchises for players and for teams. So this is still a question mark to me.”
The sponsorship is more than what most of the Aces players make annually.
Only five players on the roster make $100,000 or more annually: Wilson, Kelsey Plum, Chelsea Gray, Alysha Clark and Kiah Stokes.
“We did this the right way,” Hill told The Associated Press on Saturday. “We did something that we think works for Las Vegas and I think is great for the players. We did this without the team. It was our idea and any questions they ask they’ll find that out.”
The authority posted a video on X of Hill telling the players in the locker room the news on Friday.
“We have 100 influencers we pay to represent Las Vegas,” Hill told the AP. “This isn’t any different than that. All of these ladies are completely eligible to have sponsorships. We are just asking them to represent Vegas.”
Make no doubt about it: This is live-changing money for younger players.
“Definitely more than my salary,” said rookie Kate Martin, who makes $67,249. “I’m super thankful. Sometimes I have to pinch myself to make sure I’m not dreaming, but this is very much real life and that is what all these players deserve. I wouldn’t be getting this crazy bonus if it weren’t for how great all of these players have played in the last few years.”
The Associated Press contributed to this story.