Source: Brendall O’Banon/Clarkson Creative / Getty / Michael Porter Jr.
The NBA small forward hopped on
The Pivot Podcast hosted by
Channing Crowder, Fred Taylor, and Ryan Clark and dropped a head-scratching narrative about the WNBA that has him getting dunked on by X users.
The topic of pay equity arose during the episode after Crowder asked Porter Jr. “You have strong ties to women’s Hoops, we mentioned it earlier, and you just recently resigned or signed a new deal with Puma, right? I saw you rocking the Stewie twos. Breanna Stewart, her kicks, um… have you been outspoken about the pay the wages in the WNBA and for those ladies?
Porter Jr.’s answer was as ridiculous as you can imagine.
“I know these females want to get paid more, and they’re very talented, but so is a famous ping-pong player. Like, the best ping pong player is just as talented as the best basketball player. That doesn’t mean that they’re going to get paid the same because it’s what the people wanna watch,” Porter Jr. said in response to Crowder’s question.
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It’s no surprise Porter Jr.’s word salad on
The Pivot was an absolute brick on social media. One user wrote on X, formerly Twitter, that the NBA small forward’s comments “wasn’t advocating for women’s hoops at all, smh it’s actually insulting.”
The Pay Equity Debate
Porter Jr.’s comments opened up the floor to the tired debate about the pay gap between women and male athletes in professional sports.
The gap between WNBA players and their male counterparts remains significant. The maximum salary in the WNBA reaches $235,000, while the minimum salary in the NBA is $1.1 million.
To combat this, WNBA players have found numerous ways to bring in more revenue, whether it be analyst jobs, coaching gigs, commercials, or other business ventures.
Some even play overseas where the pay is better, but in the case of Brittney Griner, for example, it could lead to some rather unfortunate consequences.
Griner was arrested and thrown in a Russian jail for nearly ten months on drug-related charges after being detained at Moscow airport for vape cartridges.
The Phoenix Mercury superstar’s situation shed light on WNBA superstars having to play basketball overseas just to make money, something NBA players wouldn’t even fathom doing.
Some argue that Porter Jr.’s comments were based on facts, while others point to the growing excitement in the WNBA.
You can see more reactions in the gallery below.
