The WNBA is buzzing, but not just with game scores. A big conversation about player salaries and financial futures is taking center stage. Right now, a former league star is offering some blunt advice: look beyond the court if you want to truly make money.
Liz Cambage, 34, who had a WNBA career spanning over a decade, has found a different kind of success. After stepping away from the WNBA in 2022, she joined OnlyFans in 2025. She claims she’s earned far more there than she ever did playing basketball. “I feel like women should earn more money playing the sport they love,” Cambage shared with TMZ at LAX airport on Monday, October 6. She added, “I think everyone has to get it how they can… while I’m here in a mink coat.” That last part definitely raised some eyebrows.
Cambage didn’t stop there. She even offered tips to players currently fighting for a new Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) to boost their pay. “Just be yourselves. Stay true to your personality,” she advised. She believes there’s more freedom now for women to be “more feminine or express their sexuality more,” calling it “fun.” It’s clear she thinks athletes should embrace all parts of themselves to find financial independence.
Her own basketball journey took some twists. Cambage started in Australia’s WNBL. She was the second pick in the 2011 WNBA Draft, joining the Tulsa Shock. She even made the All-Star team that year. But after the 2012 Olympics, she announced she wouldn’t finish that WNBA season. She returned to the Shock in 2013, then left the league again until 2018, when she played for the Dallas Wings. A trade sent her to Las Vegas in 2019. She opted out of the 2020 season due to COVID-19 worries. Finally, she signed with the Los Angeles Sparks in 2022, only to announce her departure from the WNBA that August.
The topic of player salaries has certainly overshadowed the 2025 WNBA season. The Finals, which will decide the championship between the Las Vegas Aces and Phoenix Mercury, are wrapping up this month. The National Women’s Basketball Players Association (WNBPA), the league’s union, wants a bigger share of the revenue. They argue this is fair because the league has grown so much since the 2024 season.
More revenue sharing would mean higher pay for players. Currently, rookie salaries start around $66,079. Top players can make up to $214,466 this season. Whether a new CBA can be hammered out on time remains a big question. The current agreement, signed in 2020, runs out at the end of October. Recent happenings within the league might even cause further delays.
A dramatic example of this tension popped up on September 30. Minnesota Lynx star Napheesa Collier, 29, spoke out against WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert, 60, during her team’s exit interview. Collier claimed Engelbert made a dismissive comment about newcomers like Caitlin Clark, Angel Reese, and Paige Bueckers. The quote attributed to Engelbert was that these new stars “should be on their knees, thanking their lucky stars for the media rights deal I got them.” Engelbert quickly denied this on Friday, October 3. She told reporters sharply, “I did not make those comments.” It seems the fight for fair pay and respect is far from over, both on and off the court.