Azzi Fudd, the top pick in the 2026 WNBA Draft, will earn $500,000 in her rookie season, which is $424,000 more than Caitlin Clark's rookie salary. She will play for the Dallas Wings alongside her girlfriend, Paige Bueckers.
Azzi Fudd, Caitlin Clark
Credit: Amy Sussman/Getty; Jason Mendez/Getty
Azzi Fudd, the No. 1 pick of the 2026 WNBA Draft, is set to make big money in Big D.
When the former UConn standout joins girlfriend Paige Bueckers, 24, on the Dallas Wings for the upcoming season, Fudd, 23, will take home $500,000 thanks to the new collective bargaining agreement (CBA) signed by players last month.
Fudd’s salary is roughly $424,000 more than the $76,832 that Caitlin Clark earned in 2024, her first year in the league.
Bueckers, last season’s rookie of the year, made $78,831 in 2025.
Azzi Fudd and Paige Bueckers in April 2025
Credit: The Hapa Blonde/GC Images
Still, as the third No. 1 WNBA/NBA draft pick to go to Dallas in the last two years, Fudd’s compensation pales in comparison to Mavericks rookie Cooper Flagg’s paycheck.
Flagg, 19, earned nearly $14 million for his freshman campaign — in which he’s in the running for rookie of the year — with the Mavericks.
Before the new CBA went into effect, players across the league clamored for equal pay, given that the league’s popularity has soared since Clark’s arrival on the scene.
Previous to the new agreement, the average WNBA base salary was around $102,000, while the NBA average is about $13 million, according to Spotrac's data analyzed by SI and Basketball Reference.
In July 2025, WNBA players sent a message to the league ahead of playing in the WNBA All-Star Game by wearing warm-up shirts that read "Pay us what you owe us."
"That’s one of the things we're in the room fighting for," Clark, who was a team captain, told USA Today of the plea at the time. "We should be paid more and hopefully that’s the case moving forward as the league continues to grow."
As far as Fudd’s concerned, she’s excited to earn her keep.
"I can't wait. Obviously, Paige [Bueckers], Arike [Ogunbowale], getting to watch them and then seeing their new pieces,” she told reporters on Monday. “I'm so excited. I can't wait to get there. I can't wait to learn how to play with them, learn how they play, their style of play and how I can contribute.”
Read the original article on People
Azzi Fudd will earn $500,000 in her rookie season.
Azzi Fudd's salary is $424,000 more than Caitlin Clark's rookie salary.
Azzi Fudd will play for the Dallas Wings in the WNBA.
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