Hoda Kotb was all fired up after learning that WNBA rookie Caitlin Clark will make just a fraction of what her male cohorts earn for her first year as a professional basketball player.
“For somebody who is now the face of women’s basketball, it seemed kind of ridiculous,” Kotb said on the “Today” show Tuesday.
Hoda Kotb noted that Clark, who was the No. 1 overall draft pick Monday, signed a four-year contract with the Indiana Fever for $338,000, whereas the top pick in the 2023 NBA draft, Victor Wembanyama, landed a $55 million deal.
The “Today” show co-anchor noted that the athlete will earn significantly less money than the man who was in her position in 2023.
“There’s just something about this that’s so disturbing,” Kotb, 59, added. “I mean, I picture all the little girls with signs that say, ‘Caitlin!’ but this is what her contract is worth?”
Kotb’s co-anchor, Savannah Guthrie, chimed in to say, “Hopefully the payday is coming, too.”
The pay disparity evidently remained on Kotb’s mind for hours, as she discussed it again on “Today with Hoda & Jenna” later Tuesday morning.
“There’s just something about this that’s so disturbing,” Kotb said.
Clark will earn $76,535 for her first year playing with the Indiana Fever.
“I was like, ‘Ah! What’s she gonna get paid?’ Because finally, you can get a real paycheck, and then I saw it, and I was like, ‘This can’t be right,’” she said.
Kotb read Clark’s starting salary of $76,535 and asked, “So this is what the No. 1 player, who’s now at the WNBA, [is earning]?”
Hoda Kotb acknowledged that Clark, 22, will earn more money from various endorsements, but she still does not understand how the athlete is making significantly less than Wembanyama, who cashed in $12.1 million for his first season with the San Antonio Spurs last year.