“Just playing for pride”: Courtney Williams reveals harsh truth about WNBA’s no-pay policy during the playoffs

Minnesota Lynx guard Courtney Williams revealed the harsh truth about the WNBA's no-pay policy during the playoffs on Monday. During a live stream alongside Natisha Hiedeman, Williams explained how players weren't paid during the postseason.

The clip of Williams breaking down the pay structure was shared on Instagram by 'overtimewbb.' They added a five-word caption to the post.

"I’m sorry… they DON’T???? 🧐," it read.

In the video, Williams revealed the harsh truth about the no-pay policy during the playoffs, explaining how players played the postseason "for pride."

"When we made it to the Finals in Connecticut. We play another whole month of basketball, if that were the regular season, we would be getting the paycheck. Once our paycheck stopped after the regular season, when we go into playoff basketball, honestly, you're just playing for pride," she explained.

Explaining the policy further, Williams expressed how she once got paid $3,000 for reaching the WNBA Finals.

"We made it to the Finals, bro, we got 3,000 dollars? Three thousand! That was the bonus," she exclaimed.

The WNBA's total prize pool allocated for the playoffs is reported at $500,000. This number is then split amongst teams depending on their postseason performance.

According to Sportsrush.com, teams that exit in the first round earn $1,616 per player, followed by $3,123 per player in the second round. The runners-up receive a slightly larger sum of $7,746 per player, while the winners receive $20,825 per player.

This figure highlights the discrepancy between the NBA and the WNBA, with the NBA prize pool offering $33.7 million. Although the women's game generates lower revenue than the men's, the figure could be better. This subject will be a point of discussion during the re-negotiations of the CBA in 2026.

Courtney Williams leads one key statistic during Week 3 alongside Seattle Storm's Skylar Diggins

The Minnesota Lynx have been one of the best teams this season as Napheesa Collier and Co. remain undefeated in the league. At the end of Week 3, they sit at the top of the table with nine wins, while Courtney Williams continues to impress.

The shooting guard alongside Seattle Storm's Skylar Diggins were named as the joint assists leaders in Week 3, as they both recorded 58 assists each. The duo was followed by Natasha Cloud (53) and Kelsey Plum (45), while Mystics star Brittney Sykes (42) rounded off the top 5.

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Williams has been a guiding light for the Lynx this season, as she currently averages 12.9 points, 6.4 assists and 4.7 rebounds per game.

About the author

Arian Kashyap is a basketball journalist at Sportskeeda with over two years of experience at Essentially Sports and Spice Bite and a Bachelor's in Physical Education and Sports Sciences.

Arian's favorite team is the Miami Heat and it’s mainly down to Dwyane Wade being his favorite player of all time. Arian loved how explosive Wade was as a player and he had all the attributes, whether that be shooting, defending or passing. Arian really liked how he won titles both with and without a dynasty behind him.

Arian has also worked with Bhaichung Bhutia Football Schools and was the manager for a Delhi-based women’s team called Garwhal Untied. Garwhal won the Delhi league and were runners-up during his tenure.

Arian has judged essay writing competitions for the Commonwealth Students Welfare Group of India in 2023 and was a part of the U-14 team for the Bhaichung Bhutia Football Schools academy that qualified for the AIFF Round in 2023.

When not working or watching sports, Arian likes riding his motorcycle and reading.

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Edited by Nadim El Kak