WNBA All-Star 2024: Allisha Gr...

PHOENIX — Allisha Gray’s smile could not have been wider. In the cradle of each arm rested a trophy. Her bank account is about to receive a serious influx of cash. The deposits totaling $115,150 are 62% of her $185,000 base salary.

“I’m definitely excited about what I can do with that,” Gray said.

Gray became the first All-Star participant to double up and win both the skills and 3-point competitions at Footprint Center in Phoenix on Friday night. The 6-foot Atlanta Dream guard defeated hometown Mercury star Sophie Cunningham in the finals of the skills competition and New York Liberty center Jonquel Jones by one point in the shooting competition.

She’s also the first to bank so much cash during the All-Star weekend’s first evening of festivities. The WNBA awards $2,575 to each competition’s winner as outlined in the 2020 collective bargaining agreement. For the first time, Aflac committed $55,000 to each competition’s winner as announced by WNBA Players Association (WNBPA) president Nneka Ogwumike on Thursday.

“This amazing contribution brings us closer to parity with our brothers in basketball,” Ogwumike said in a statement.

It’s another example of the league’s growth this season amid unprecedented viewership and attendance numbers. The investment players have long called for is rolling in with more national TV windows, sponsorships and amenities. A record number of brands activated at the league’s annual WNBA Live event, this year held at the Convention Center across the street from the arena. Merchandise kiosks runneth over with various gear — a pain point of past events — and fans mingled around downtown Phoenix in the bright All-Star jerseys of Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese.

“How we felt on the inside is now matching the outside, especially when it comes to investment,” Ogwumike, a nine-time All-Star with the Seattle Storm, said on Friday. “I love that Aflac came in and stepped forward and really displayed their investment. And hopefully [it] represented by example for so many other organizations and companies that are looking to invest and partner. I would really hope that this is something that continues.”

Ogwumike said she wished players were aware of it beforehand when making their decision on participating, but “nevertheless they stepped in.”

The 3-point contest was missing Sabrina Ionescu, the 3-point record holder for the WNBA and NBA who did not participate while focused on Team USA heading into the Paris Olympics. Caitlin Clark said she wanted to take a breather and enjoy her first All-Star weekend.

Marina Mabrey, Kayla McBride and Stefanie Dolson rounded out the 3-point contest. Mabrey, Sophie Cunningham and Brittney Griner, the only Olympian to take part on Friday, played in the skills competition as did Kelsey Mitchell. The Fever veteran stepped in for teammate Erica Wheeler — and even wore her jersey — when Wheeler, the 2019 All-Star MVP, couldn’t find a flight to Phoenix.

Gray remained the last standing in both competitions and appeared shocked when Jones’ final shot didn’t fall in the 3-point competition, giving her the victory and payout. Las Vegas Aces superstar A’ja Wilson, Gray’s former South Carolina teammate, amped her up on the sideline in Gray’s signature goggles and a digital camera in hand.

“I was warmed from the skills challenge,” Gray said. “I was running all over the court, so I was able to get my legs and stuff. I was fatigued a little bit from the skills challenge, but I was able to lock in because I knew another 55K was on the line.”

WNBA maximum salaries went up 82% in the 2020 CBA, which both sides agreed to in what feels like a full lifetime ago given the world’s events and the soaring interest in the league. Multiple players said on Friday salaries are one of the bigger, if not biggest, things they want to see improve again with a new media deal and CBA.

“That’s the one thing I always have been talking about, player salaries,” 20-year veteran Diana Taurasi said. “How do we move that forward? How do we make sure our players don’t have to go overseas for 10 years. I know, I had to do that.”

The players can opt out of the CBA by Nov. 1 of this year and have indicated they plan to do so. The media deal negotiated as part of the NBA package is a reported $200 million per year and could provide an influx of cash to pay out bigger base salaries.

But it could be more given the recent rise in interest. Cheryl Miller, a Hall of Famer and the Mercury’s first head coach, said it’s “not enough, not even close” to what it should be.

“A two is nice. An eight would be better,” Miller, the head coach of Team WNBA in the All-Star game, said. “That’s what I’m talking about. Because they know. They know. And we certainly have come a long way. I’m not about gauging, but it’s a long time overdue and we’re going to continue to get better and better. All you have to do is look at college basketball and what’s coming next, the next wave. The next wave of excitement.”

Players can also sign league and team marketing deals to rack up more cash. Sponsorships are pouring in at higher rates than ever. Clark and Angel Reese, the sensational rookies locked in a Rookie of the Year contest and teammates on Team WNBA, are credited with bringing in large swaths of new fans. Players like UConn’s Naismith winner Paige Bueckers and USC’s likely future Naismith winner JuJu Watkins will bring in more.

When players like Ogwumike and even Gray were coming up, they faced more pushback from the entities now wanting a piece of the WNBA pie.

“We grew up [with people] saying, ‘They should lower the rim, they should do this, y’all should wear skirts, y’all should wear booty shorts.’ You know what I mean?” Ogwumike said. “I’m just kind of like, we’re playing basketball, you know what I’m saying? I think that the level of investment right now, it’s transformational because there’s more people watching. They made it accessible for everyone to see it.”

It was only two years ago in Chicago the All-Star skills and 3-point competitions were held at a low-ceilinged convention center without any ticketed fans and in the late Friday afternoon TV window. In Phoenix, it was a party complete with all 12 mascots, thousands piled into the arena and celebrities littering the sidelines.

There were no rookies in the competition. The vets who’ve pushed and experienced the growth took center stage and Gray walked out the victor weighted down with trophies and lifted up with cash.

She’ll invest some of it with plans for a business. New golf clubs might be in the future. And sure, she said, she’ll take the team out to dinner with one stipulation.

“They just got to let me know early so I can prepare my mind, because I’m still a very cheap person,” Gray said. “They got a plan, I’ll just pay the bill.”

It’s becoming easier than ever for WNBA superstars to do it.