Auriemma, Dangerfield praise WNBA deal
MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Crystal Dangerfield isn’t a pro yet, but she will be before long.
So it’s no surprise, then, that the UConn point guard got a bit excited when it was announced Tuesday morning that the WNBA and its players’ union reached a groundbreaking tentative labor agreement that will increase compensation and resources for the players.
“Absolutely,” said Dangerfield, a senior. “It makes the league more attractive. It makes the players feel like they’re respected more. It’s what they deserve. It’s what they’ve earned. I’m happy for them.”
Under the new agreement, which will begin this season and run through 2027, maximum salaries will jump to $215,000. The average annual compensation is expected to be nearly $130,000, almost double the amount from two years ago.
Additionally, the league’s top stars will be able to earn as much as $500,000 through bonuses and marketing, giving them more incentive to stay home in the offseason instead of going overseas, where salaries traditionally have been more lucrative.
“I haven’t read everything that’s gone into it, but obviously it’s a big step,” said Dangerfield, a likely first-round pick. “Obviously, it’s a big step. I feel very excited about it.”
UConn coach Geno Auriemma also applauded the deal, complimenting commissioner Cathy Engelbert for making a bigger investment in her players.
The Huskies have had 38 players drafted in the WNBA since the league’s inception in 1997, including a record 25 in the first round.
“Like any great business, you invest in your people,” he said Tuesday following a 68-56 victory over Memphis . “I think some of the things they’ve come up with are huge for the players in a lot of ways, not just financially.”
The deal also includes better travel arrangements such as upgraded airline
seats and individual hotel rooms on the road for all players, as well as fully paid maternity leave and enhanced mental health benefits.
“Which comes first? The game has to get to a certain level and then you’re going to reward the players? Or you’re going to incentivize the players because the game has moved forward, and it will keep moving forward if you keep incentivizing the players?” Auriemma asked rhetorically. “I think the league is doing a great thing. They’re investing in their players.” No problem: Dangerfield came to Auriemma’s defense after he caught flak for calling his players “dummies” following a 74-58 loss to Baylor last Thursday.
Auriemma’s comment, which was in reference to his players fouling down double digits with under a minute to play, received a smattering of criticism on social media and at ESPN.
“Only Geno could get away with this stuff,” Trey Wingo said on the Worldwide Leader’s “Golic and Wingo Show,” to which co-host Mike Golic Jr. replied, “He’s not getting away with it. He’s a pretty big jerk for calling a bunch of college kids dumb.”
Dangerfield said she didn’t hear those comments, and doesn’t think Auriemma did anything wrong.
“If I’m going to speak directly to whoever gave him any trouble for that, we don’t take it personal,” she said. “It’s basketball. We just go out there and play.” Hello … and goodbye?: UConn and Tennessee will play next Thursday in Hartford and again next season in Knoxville, Tenn.
Auriemma doesn’t care whether the rivalry continues after that.
“Everything’s like a
Broadway show,” he said. “It has its run and then it’s got to end. It ended, and I don’t know that you’re going to get that back. I think college basketball is doing pretty damn good without it.
“We have a two-game series. If it goes beyond that, great. If it doesn’t, it’s just the way it is.”
UConn is 13-9 all-time against Tennessee, including 4-0 in national championship games. The schools last played in 2007 before the Lady Vols ended the series amid allegations of recruiting improprieties.
“With the way the game has grown in the last five, six, seven, eight, 10 years, there’s so many great matchups now, compelling matchups, that I don’t know that ConnecticutTennessee carries the same significance that it did years ago,” Auriemma said. “I don’t feel it. Our fans don’t feel it back home. Otherwise that game would’ve been sold out six months ago and it’s not. It’s just different now.”