Aliyah Boston, the No. 1 pick in the 2023 WNBA Draft and former star of the South Carolina Gamecocks, was recently approached by TMZ Sports in New York and had some thoughts on how NIL can eventually help women’s basketball at the professional level.
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With college basketball stars such as Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese making more money off NIL than some stars in the WNBA, there is a lot of chatter about the imbalance between student-athletes and professionals.
The “NIL deals vs. WNBA salaries” conversation was trending in social media circles over the last few weeks.
Boston thinks that is about to change and that big NIL paydays could put pressure on WNBA teams to increase pay for its professional athletes as the game continues to strengthen.
“Everything that’s happening is to grow the game,” Boston told TMZ Sports. “I just think no matter how it goes, I just think it’s all just to grow the game.”
Boston feels Reese is a “killer” on the court and will make the move to the WNBA when eligible. Reese has been raking in the NIL cash of late.
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Boston will now play for the Indiana Fever after an illustrious four-year collegiate career. She was named to the first-team All-American team this past season and was the 2022 Naismith Women’s College Player of the Year after helping her Gamecocks win the 2022 national championship.
Boston is coming off a senior season in which she averaged 13 points, 9.8 rebounds, and 2 blocks per game while shooting 55.9 percent from the field.
