Gabby Williams Returns to Play Overseas After Viral WNBA Pay Criticism
Seattle Storm guard Gabby Williams has been at the center of much discussion about the WNBA's pay structure in recent days.
Williams — who has split time between playing in Europe and in the WNBA since entering professional basketball in 2018 — delivered clear criticism of the WNBA and commissioner Cathy Engelbert's "not true" claims about how much money the WNBA pays its players during her end-of-season exit interview with the Storm on Thursday.
In the interview (which has since gone viral), Williams said, "Our commissioner talked about us being able to make $700,000. That's actually not true at all. There's not one player who makes that.
"We were promised team marketing agreements and league marketing agreements, but they've fallen quite short," Williams continued. "So it's still not enough for us international players to want to stay here. And that's a choice of the players. If I make a choice to make more money, whatever, and then teams are mad that I don't come back, but that's how it is.
Gabby Williams speaks about how the WNBA can do better when it comes to international players 🗣️
— The Sporting News (@sportingnews) September 26, 2024
"Our commissioner talked about us being able to, you know, make $700,000. That's actually not true at all. There's not one player who makes that." pic.twitter.com/RPh7IzN4lh
Williams followed this up with a TikTok on Friday that addressed some of the feedback she received, as it pertains to Caitlin Clark's fanbase claiming that the rookie earned more than $700,000 from the WNBA this season.
"So I know all these, you know, Caitlin Clark fans, whatever, like 'Caitlin Clark makes $700,000'. That's off of endorsements. I'm not talking about endorsements," Williams said in the TikTok. "I'm talking about the WNBA. And no, there is not one player in the entire WNBA that makes the money that the commissioner likes to brag about. And that was the point of that clip as well."
Williams appeared to have posted that TikTok from an airplane. And on Saturday, it became clear where the 28-year-old was headed.
She has returned overseas to play with the Istanbul, Turkey-based professional basketball team, Fenerbahçe S.K.
Fenerbahçe S.K. posted an image of Williams holding up their team banner on Saturday with the caption, "Yeni transferimiz Gabby Williams, İstanbul’da! 💛💙
"Welcome to Istanbul, @gabbywilliams15! 🫶"
Yeni transferimiz Gabby Williams, İstanbul’da! 💛💙
— Fenerbahçe Kadın Basketbol (@fbkadinbasket) September 28, 2024
Welcome to Istanbul, @gabbywilliams15! 🫶#PotanınKraliçeleri pic.twitter.com/5Un4HhBywO
This caption (loosely) translates to, "Our new transfer, Gabby Williams, is in Istanbul!"
Given that Fenerbahçe S.K.'s season continues until June 1, 2025, this would theoretically mean that Williams, who is an unrestricted free agent in the WNBA, would miss the start of the next WNBA season (which is also what she elected to do in 2024).
But Williams is clearly prioritizing money at this point rather than playing in the WNBA.
Grant Young covers Women’s Basketball, the New York Yankees, and the New York Mets for Sports Illustrated’s ‘On SI’ sites. He holds an MFA degree in creative writing from the University of San Francisco (USF), where he also graduated with a Bachelor’s Degree in Marketing and played on USF’s Division I baseball team for five years. However, he now prefers Angel Reese to Angels in the Outfield.