Kelsey Plum has admitted she made a ‘bad joke’ when she called out Caitlin Clark and other members of her All-Star team last month.
The WNBA All-Stars – who were divided into Team Clark and Team Collier (drafted by Clark and Napheesa Collier respectively) – made a huge splash ahead of the game as they protested for higher pay.
Each All-Star wore a t-shirt with the words ‘Pay us what you owe us’ before facing off in Indianapolis.
However, Plum appeared to split up that united front after the game when she shared that ‘zero members of Team Clark were very present’ for a meeting the morning of the game, when they decided to wear the shirts.
Plum has now shared that she was attempting to poke fun at Team Clark for being hungover from the night before.
‘Oh, I made a bad joke. I made a really bad joke,’ Plum told WNBA legend Sue Bird on the ‘Bird’s Eye View’ podcast. ‘Tough one.’
Caitlin Clark and her fellow WNBA players wore T-shirts protesting against their league bosses
But Kelsey Plum said after the game that ‘zero members of Team Clark were very present’ for a meeting that decided the shirts would be worn
Plum continued: ‘I should have… because of the shirts, because of the fans, I should have known it was a way more serious moment than a typical All-Star Game.
‘Because I went into that press conference very happy-go-lucky, we won. Had a great weekend, my family’s here, it was just a great time.
Plum clarified to Bird that ‘we’re all on the same page’ as the WNBA players’ union fights for a new collective bargaining agreement.
‘We all wore the shirts, we’re all unified. And I think if anything, I was just more discouraged because I felt like it took away from the moment of what we were trying to do,’ she said.
Amid a huge boom in excitement surrounding the league in the last year (largely thanks to Clark), the players’ union opted out of the current CBA a year early and are in the process of negotiating a new one.
The current agreement lasts until October 31 of this year.
Caitlin Clark sat out the All-Star Game in Indianapolis with a right groin injury
Plum has had another strong season for the Sparks, averaging north of 20 points
According to figures cited by Sports Illustrated, WNBA salaries roughly range from a minimum of $66,000 to a super maximum contract of around $250,000.
Young stars like Clark are especially on the low end of that due to their rookie-scale contracts, with the Fever sensation earning just $78,000 for this season.
There will be a huge influx of cash into the league starting next season, as a new 11-year media rights deal worth over $2.2billion is set to kick off.
Three new expansion teams also each paid $250m in fees to join the league.
However, a New York Post article in October pointed out that the WNBA was set to lose $40million last season.
Clark has endured a nightmarish second season in the pros as various injuries have limited her to 13 of 34 games.
Plum, meanwhile, is averaging over 20 points per night – but has ruffled some feathers with her actions on the court.
