Iowa Hawkeyes superstar Caitlin Clark has received a $5 million offer from professional basketball league BIG3, the league’s owner Ice Cube confirmed in a Wednesday tweet.
Ice Cube confirmed the “historic” offer from his three-on-three baketball league after TMZ initially reported the details.
“We intended the offer to remain private while Caitlin Clark plays for the championship. But I won’t deny what’s now already out there,” the rapper tweeted. “BIG3 made a historic offer to Caitlin Clark. Why wouldn’t we? Caitlin is a generational athlete who can achieve tremendous success in the BIG3.”
We intended the offer to remain private while Caitlin Clark plays for the championship. But I won’t deny what’s now already out there: BIG3 made a historic
offer to Caitlin Clark. Why wouldn’t we? Caitlin is a generational athlete who can achieve tremendous success in the BIG3. https://t.co/cwzHh7EVau— Ice Cube (@icecube) March 27, 2024
The unprecedented offer is for only eight regular season games and another two if she makes the playoffs, according to TMZ. That’s half a million per game. The deal would also allow her to play in the WNBA simultaneously, according to TMZ. (RELATED: DOJ Investigating Slimeball Silver’s NBA For Alleged Antitrust Violations Against Famous Rapper’s League: REPORT)
IOWA CITY, IOWA- MARCH 23: Guard Caitlin Clark #22 of the Iowa Hawkeyes leaps into 3-point range for a shot in the first half against the Holy Cross Crusaders during their match-up in the 2024 NCAA Division 1 Womens Basketball Championship at Carver-Hawkeye Arena on March 23, 2024 in Iowa City, Iowa. Matthew Holst/Getty Images
Jaylen Brown of the NBA’s Boston Celtics played in the BIG3’s 2023 All-Star Game, so there is precedent for big league players crossing balling for Cube’s league on the side.
“America’s women athletes should not be forced to spend their off seasons playing in often dismal and dubious foreign countries just to make ends meet,” Ice Cube tweeted as part of the thread announcing the Clark offer.
America’s women athletes should not be forced to spend their off seasons playing in often dismal and dubious foreign countries just to make ends meet.
— Ice Cube (@icecube) March 27, 2024
“They should have more than just one professional option in the US at a time when American pro sports leagues are being infiltrated by autocratic, anti-women regimes such as Qatar,” he continued. “Our pathbreaking offer to Caitlin Clark demonstrates that BIG3 now offers another choice for athletes.”
And they should have more than just one professional option in the US at a time when American pro sports leagues are being infiltrated by autocratic, anti-women regimes such as Qatar. Our pathbreaking offer to Caitlin Clark demonstrates that BIG3 now offers another choice for…
— Ice Cube (@icecube) March 27, 2024
This is a no-brainer to me and a deal I fully expect her to take. $5 million would make her BY FAR the highest-contracted female professional basketball player in American history, and possibly the highest ever.
IOWA CITY, IOWA- MARCH 25: Guard Caitlin Clark #22 of the Iowa Hawkeyes celebrates as time runs out in the second half against the West Virginia Mountaineers during their second round match-up in the 2024 NCAA Division 1 Women’s Basketball Championship at Carver-Hawkeye Arena on March 25, 2024 in Iowa City, Iowa. Matthew Holst/Getty Images
IOWA CITY, IOWA- MARCH 25: Guard Caitlin Clark #22 of the Iowa Hawkeyes gestures to the crowd as she leaves the court after the game against the West Virginia Mountaineers during their second round match-up in the 2024 NCAA Division 1 Women’s Basketball Championship at Carver-Hawkeye Arena on March 25, 2024 in Iowa City, Iowa. Matthew Holst/Getty Images
WNBA players make incredibly low salaries relative to their male counterparts. The WNBA’s highest paid athlete, Erica Wheeler, made just $242,000 from her contract with the Indiana Fever in 2023, according to Statista.
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA – JULY 27: Erica Wheeler #17 of Team Wilson brings the ball up the court against Team Delle Donne during the WNBA All-Star Game 2019 at the Mandalay Bay Events Center on July 27, 2019 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Team Wilson defeated Team Delle Donne 129-126. Ethan Miller/Getty Images
The low wages in America force these lady ballers to seek higher profit elsewhere, most notably countries like Russia, where Phoenix Mercury center Brittany Griner was playing when she was arrested for drug possession before being swapped for arms dealer Viktor Bout.
US Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA) basketball player Brittney Griner, who was detained at Moscow’s Sheremetyevo airport and later charged with illegal possession of cannabis, leaves the courtroom after the court’s verdict in Khimki outside Moscow, on August 4, 2022. – A Russian court found Griner guilty of smuggling and storing narcotics after prosecutors requested a sentence of nine and a half years in jail for the athlete. KIRILL KUDRYAVTSEV/AFP via Getty Images
Griner says she made $1 million per year on her Russian team, according to Fortune magazine.
Clark, now the all-time scoring leader in NCAA-DI history (shoutout Pearl Moore though), is an electric player to watch. She currently has her team in the NCAA tournament’s Sweet Sixteen and besides her incredible scoring prowess, her fiery attitude makes her a captivating spectacle. Her addition to the Big3 could help further the WNBA’s longstanding struggle to attain and maintain relevance. (RELATED: Absolutely Incredible: Legendary Women’s College Basketball Player Already Having Impact On Pro Ticket Sales)
IOWA CITY, IOWA- MARCH 25: Guard Caitlin Clark #22 of the Iowa Hawkeyes passes the ball in the second half against guard J.J. Quinerly #11 of the West Virginia Mountaineers during their second round match-up in the 2024 NCAA Division 1 Women’s Basketball Championship at Carver-Hawkeye Arena on March 25, 2024 in Iowa City, Iowa. Matthew Holst/Getty Images
MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA – MARCH 10: Caitlin Clark #22 of the Iowa Hawkeyes waits to enter the game in the first half against the Nebraska Cornhuskers during the Big Ten Women’s Basketball Tournament Championship at Target Center on March 10, 2024 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Adam Bettcher/Getty Images
She would be the first female player in the Big3, though Ice Cube did note that the league has broken barriers with female coaches like Nancy Lieberman and Lisa Leslie. It’s still unclear whether they would try to sign more women for her to play against or throw her in against the men. But either way, her participation is sure to be a massive draw.
Whether or not she’ll actually be successful competing against men is a whole separate conversation, but I look forward to seeing her compete.