Both Clark as well as Ionescu will be both players at the WNBA All-Star Game on Saturday evening.

By Dylan Manfre

Jul 18, 2024 04:12 PM

Caitlin Clark and Sabrina Ionescu , two of the WNBA most well-known players, opted not to play in the Friday’s 3-point game in Phoenix.

Ionescu is currently in training for Ionescu is currently preparing for the Paris Olympics. The group games begin on the 29th of July in Japan and according to reports from the Associated Press, is focused specifically on her Olympic training camp. Clark who was removed from the roster of USA’s team she is currently wrapping her first few months of an unprecedented record-setting first half of her debut season.

Last week, WNBA players’ association director Terri Carmichael Jackson protested against reports that claimed the league would receive around 200 million dollars per year under the body’s $75 billion 11-year media rights agreement, which also includes Disney, NBC and Amazon.

“We look forward to learning how the NBA arrived at a $200 million valuation–if initial reports are accurate or even close,” Carmichael Jackson made a statement in a press release. The figure is a sixfold increase in rights-related payments to players of the WNBA as a participant in negotiations.

Clark was in her own manner she recorded an all-game WNBA record in assists, with 19 in the following night as she along with teammates from the Indiana Fever closed the first period of the season with defeat against the Dallas Wings. Clark and team of Chicago’s Angel Reese were the only two rookies named all-stars.

In the most current collective bargaining agreement the athletes receive $1,030 if they play the 3-point contest. The winner is awarded $2,575.

Following discussions on the payouts of bonuses were made public on platforms such as Facebook, Nneka Ogwumike, president of the WNBPA and forward for the Seattle Storm, posted on X the insurance company Aflac announces that it is “supplementing the league’s pay” and adding $55,000 in prize money awarded to those who win the three-point contest as well as the contest to test your skills.

“This initiative is a testament to our commitment to promoting women in sports and celebrating the dedication and talent of these incredible players,” Garth Knutson, Aflac’s chief marketing officer, said in a statement.

WNBA didn’t immediately state whether this was allowed within the CBA.

The participants in this year’s 3 point competition include Ionescu’s New York Liberty teammate Jonquel Jones, Stefanie Dolson (Washington Mystics), Allisha Gray (Atlanta Dream), Marina Mabrey (Connecticut Sun) and Kayla McBride (Minnesota Lynx).

The basketball’s All Star event in February Ionescu took part in a 3- point contest with Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry that saw Curry beating Ionescu three points to one. Ionescu was the winner of the 3-point competition the previous year and scored 37 points in the final round and scoring 25 of the 27 shots.

The pair consisting of Clark and Ionescu are scheduled to participate as both players in the WNBA All-Star Game on Saturday evening.

(This piece has been revised to include information on the agreement between the NBA and WNBA for media rights as well as team members who are rookies as well as details about how to claim the Aflac Bonus payments. )