Here it is 2012 and although women have climbed higher on the rungs of that ladder of opportunity, females in the workplace continue to earn 70 cents to every male’s dollar. Unfortunately, that fact is a huge social bruise when we examine gender differences on the basketball court.

•  Marian Jones, a well-known athlete who lost all five gold medals in 2000 when she admitted to using steroids, is now a rookie, playing guard for Tulsa Shock in Oklahoma. Her salary? $35,000.
• Veteran WNBA member, Lisa Leslie, began when the league was launched 13 years ago. She gained a fast reputation for points and rebounds, playing for the Los Angeles. When Leslie retired in 2009, her ending salary was $91,000.
• Candace Parker, the number one pick in 2008 to play alongside Lisa Leslie in Los Angeles picked up endorsements for Gatorade and Adidas, to boost her overall income to $3 million.
• Sheryl Swoopes, WNBA player for Seattle Storm in Washington, is a gold medal winner who made an annual salary of $99,000 as a basketball player. Her income rose significantly when Nike created “Swoopes Shoes,” with this well-known athlete as the focus.

All of us here at the Basketball Goal Store know that female athletes dedicate the same hours to conditioning, practice and games. Their bodies suffer the same amount of exertion on the basketball court as male players. They make the same personal sacrifices, as far as travel and appearances to promote their teams. It would appear that the only difference really, between male and female professional basketball players is the size of their bank accounts. Veteran players for the WNBA average $101,000. Veteran members of the NBA, however, take hope a whopping $5 million.

That old saying, “You’ve come a long way, Baby,” doesn’t necessarily score any points when we compare gender earnings on the basketball court. But don’t let that discourage you, girls. You have nowhere to go but higher- toward the basket and the pay rates.So continue to practice shooting free throws and three pointers at your Goalrilla Basketball Goal. Concentrate on those defensive drills and moving the ball down the court.

The dedicated female athletes before you have blazed the trail for you and now you can take it even further into the future!

-Pat of the Basketball Goal Store Blog Team