One of the most decorated players in WNBA history, Candace Parker, has a firm message for the league: it’s time to raise the standards. With three championships, two MVP awards, seven All-Star selections, and a place among the league’s Top 25 players of all time, Parker isn’t holding back as current players and league officials negotiate the next collective bargaining agreement.
The contrast between her experiences overseas and in the WNBA couldn’t be starker, and she’s using that gap to call for major change. According to her, if the league wants to keep top talent stateside, they need to step up their game.
What Sparked Candace Parker’s Bold Challenge to the WNBA?
The conversation gained momentum during the 2025 All-Star game when players warmed up in shirts that read “Pay Us What You Owe Us.” This public show of solidarity transcended team lines, bringing the crucial issue of player salaries and benefits into the mainstream spotlight.
For Parker, this disparity in treatment is deeply personal. She’s using her own career as evidence that the league needs to match the respect and resources players receive elsewhere. Speaking to Aliyah Boston, Parker praised current stars for being able to earn a living stateside but warned the league against complacency.
“I’m happy for y’all that you are all able to stay stateside and make income. But I do really challenge the WNBA to step their game up,” Parker said.
She then painted a vivid picture of her time in Russia, where she played for UMMC Ekaterinburg. “Because in Russia, we had chefs, we had amazing apartments, we had drivers, we flew charter. We traveled around Europe as the No. 1 team and were compensated as such. I mean, my black diamonds are from Russia. They were given to me as a birthday gift. My daughter got black diamonds, I got a Rolex watch.”
She followed, “I mean, the amount of gifts that I got from our owners in Russia, and I think that it just makes you feel welcome, and it makes you feel like you’re one of the top players. And are treated as such.”
Why Did Candace Parker and Others Choose to Play Overseas?
The luxurious treatment certainly appealed to players like Parker, but that wasn’t the primary motivation. Playing overseas wasn’t just an option during their prime years – it was a financial necessity to build a sustainable career.
Last month, on the All Facts No Brakes podcast, Parker revealed the stark reality: “I had to go overseas, but I also got to. I made my real money in Russia, Turkey, and China. The WNBA was my summer job. The opportunity to go make millions overseas was just too enticing. The way you take care of your family is you go overseas.”
Between 2010 and 2015, Parker spent five winters in Russia, later adding short stints in China and Turkey. Despite her legendary career, Spotrac estimates Parker’s total WNBA earnings at just over $1 million, which is less than what many NBA rookies make in a single season.
Parker wasn’t alone in this exodus. Diana Taurasi, Sue Bird, Deanna Nolan, Anne Wauters, and Sandrine Gruda all made similar journeys overseas for the same financial reasons. The WNBA simply couldn’t compete with international offers.
Taurasi has been particularly vocal about this pay gap in her recently released docuseries. She recalled bluntly, “I’m the best player in the world and I have to go to a communist country to get paid like a capitalist.”
Her frustration was palpable: “We weren’t making that much money. So, generational wealth was coming from going to Russia every year. Now we have to come back home to get paid nothing? To play in a harder league, in worse conditions, against the best competition in the world? The f**king janitor at the arena made more than me.”
MORE: When NCAA Legend Diana Taurasi Received a Harsh Reality Check After Entering the WNBA With Mercury
While the league has made improvements, newer stars like Caitlin Clark, Paige Bueckers, and Angel Reese now have the privilege of earning millions without needing to leave the country.
However, the conversations surrounding player compensation have reached a boiling point, adding pressure on the league to meet evolving player demands. If the WNBA wants to keep elite talent stateside and compete with international opportunities, they’ll need to match not just the financial compensation but the overall experience that made overseas play so attractive.
