WNBA commish Cathy Engelbert allegedly, ruthlessly belittles Caitlin Clark 

Minnesota Lynx star Napheesa Collier went scorched Earth on WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert and the rest of the league’s administration during a scathing end-of-season press conference Tuesday afternoon. During her nearly 4 1/2-minute opening statement, Collier called out the league’s leadership for what she described as a “negligence” in accountability and specifically pointed to a flippant comment made by Engelbert regarding WNBA superstar Caitlin Clark.

Citing an offseason conversation with Engelbert in February, Collier recalled the longtime WNBA commissioner suggesting Clark — the WNBA’s most popular player by far — “should be grateful” for her lucrative off-the-court sponsorship deals, because without the WNBA, the former Iowa star “wouldn’t make anything.”

“Her response was, ‘Caitlin should be grateful she makes $16 million off the court because, without the platform that the WNBA givers her, she wouldn’t make anything,'” Collier alleged Engelbert told her, according to video posted ESPN’s Malika Andrews.

Clark, whose second WNBA season was cut short due to nagging injuries, is in the midst of a four-year rookie deal that would pay her approxiately $338,000 for an average annual WNBA salary of $84,514. That’s for the No. 1 overall pick of the 2024 WNBA Draft out of Iowa.

It’s a paltry sum for a superstar that has helped elevate the WNBA’s profile with young fans, many of whom followed Clark from her college days into the professional ranks. As a rookie, Clark reportedly earned more than $11 million, a significant portion of which came courtesy of a litany of sponsorship deals with name-brand organizations such as Nike, Gatorade, State Farm, and Buick, just to name a few.

After earning approximately $3.1 million in NIL (name, image and likeness) deals in her final season at Iowa, Clark signed an eight-year, $28 million deal with Nike that pays her approximately $3.5 million per year. Suffice it to say, Clark is among the most popular female athletes in professional sports today and her brand reaches far beyond the WNBA, further discrediting Engelbert’s alleged comments to Collier.

Hours after Collier’s comments went viral, Engelbert responded with a statement of her own.

“I have the utmost respect for Napheesa Collier and for all the players in the WNBA,” Engelbert wrote, per On3’s Talia Goodman. “Together we have all worked tirelessly to transform this league.

“My focus remains on ensuring a bright future for the players and the WNBA, including collaborating on how we continue to elevate the game. I am disheartened by how Napheesa characterized our conversations and league leadership, but even when our perspectives differ, my commitment to the players and to this work will not waver.”

Napheesa Collier goes scorched earth on WNBA, commissioner Cathy Engelbert

Napheesa Collier sat down at her exit interview this afternoon with a prepared statement for the media regarding the WNBA and it’s leadership, namely league commissioner Cathy Engelbert, and how it addresses several facets of their game — be it officiating, paying players, or just the general product on the floor.

“I want to be clear. This conversation is not about winning or losing. It’s about something much bigger. The real threat to our league isn’t money, it isn’t ratings, or even missed calls or physical play. It’s the lack of accountability from the league office,” Collier began. “Since I’ve been in the league, you’ve heard the constant concerns about officiating and it has now reached levels of inconsistency that plague our sport and undermine the integrity in which it operates. Whether the league cares about the health of the players is one thing, but to also not care about the product we put on the floor is truly self-sabotage. Year after year, the only thing that remains consistent is the lack of accountability from our leaders.”

Collier then called out the WNBA leadership for focusing more on its “control and power” as a professional league and less on the players that help create the product on the court.

“The league has made it clear it isn’t about innovation, it isn’t about collaboration. It’s about control and power,” Collier continued. “I have earned this platform, and I paid the price to get here and now I have a responsibility to speak on behalf of the fans and everybody in this league that deserves better. Our leadership’s answer to being held accountable is to suppress everyone’s voices by handing out fines. I’m not concerned about a fine. I’m concerned about the future of our sport.”

— On3’s Sam Gillenwater and Grant Grubbs contributed to this report.