Each of Clark and Ionescu will be part of both players in 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 ’s best-known players, declined to participate in Friday’s 3-point contest in Phoenix.

Ionescu is currently preparing for Ionescu is preparing for the Paris Olympics. Group play begins on July 29 in Japan and as per the Associated Press, is focused specifically on her Olympic camp. Clark who was removed from the team USA’s roster she is wrapping up the initial few months of a record-setting the first half of her debut campaign.

This week, WNBA players’ association director Terri Carmichael Jackson protested against reports claiming that the league will receive about $200 million per year in the league’s $75 billion eleven-year media rights contract that 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 declared in an announcement. The figure represents a six-fold increase in rights payments for the WNBA as a party to negotiations.

Clark was, in her own way she set the single-game WNBA record for assists with 19 later that night when she and the Indiana Fever closed the first part of the season with defeat in the Dallas Wings. Clark as well as the Chicago’s Angel Reese were the only two rookies to be named all-stars.

In the latest collective bargaining contract, athletes are paid $1,030 when they participate in the 3-point game The winner receives $2,575.

After discussions regarding the bonuses’ payout amounts were posted via platforms like Facebook, Nneka Ogwumike, president of the WNBPA and forward for the Seattle Storm, posted on X the insurance firm Aflac has announced that it will be “supplementing the league’s pay” and adding $55,000 to prize money for winners of the 3-point challenge and the skills test contest.

“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 stated in an announcement.

The WNBA did not immediately clarify if this was permitted in the CBA.

The contestants of this year’s 3-point competition includes 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 played in a 3 point match alongside Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry which resulted in Curry defeat Ionescu 3 points to 3. Ionescu was the W’s champion of the 3-point contest in the previous year, scoring 37 points during the last round scoring 25 of 27 shots.

The duo of Clark and Ionescu are scheduled to play in both players in WNBA All-Star Game on Saturday evening.

(This article has been updated with information about the NBA/WNBA agreement for media rights and the rookie all-star teams, as well as information about the Aflac bonus payments.)