Candace Parker Sends Blunt Message on WNBA 'Pay Us' Shirts After Poor All-Star Effort

In tandem with the 2025 All-Star weekend that took place in Indiana mid-July, the league and members of the WNBA players association (WNBPA) sat down for an in-person meeting to discuss terms for the upcoming CBA, with many players coming out of the sit-down expressing frustrations about where the league was willing to meet them in the process, revenue shares being a key topic of the discussions.

Currently, WNBA players receive a 9% revenue split, compared to about 50% in the NBA. With the next CBA expected to be worth exponentially more, players have been vocal about wanting a larger share that reflects the league’s recent growth in viewership and revenue.

But Parker didn’t hold back in critiquing how players chose to send their message, pointing to a disconnect between the statement on their shirts and the product on the court.

“Y’all can’t come out there with those shirts of ‘Pay Us What You Owe Us…’and then do that in the All-Star Game,” referencing the lackadaisical effort put in, even saying she felt the quality of the game was “awful.”

Parker went on to expand on her statement when Boston pushed back saying, “I understand that it is challenging. You all were added 4-5 games this season without compensation which is unfair,” she said talking about the WNBA’s expanding from 40 games last season to 44 this year.

Parker went on to say, “But I think on one of the biggest stages with people tuned in in an all star setting that was invested in in any other all star game previously––without Caitlin Clark––I think that it would have maximized the moment of wearing the shirt with giving the product.”

Candace Parker Critiques WNBA's 'Pay Us What You Owe Us' Shirts After 'Awful' All-Star Performance

Boston challenged Parker’s stance, defending the players’ effort while pointing out the toll of a demanding season.

“An All-Star Game, when we have another game in two days—I think it’s okay to just go out there and hoop and have some fun,” Boston said. “Because on Tuesday, we were back at it… and we were showing once again why we deserve to get paid.”

Parker acknowledged Boston’s point, but she doubled down on her belief saying, “I just think that no you all didn’t have to but i think it was an opportunity that you could have built on more momentum.”

The candid conversation between two generations of WNBA stars left a lot to think about in how to navigate the tensions emerging in the current CBA negotiations. And while they both seemed to want the same thing for players in the end, it wasn’t about what they wanted—but how to get there.