A mascot who earns more than the highest paid player in the WNBA (the women’s NBA)? yep. It’s true and it also shows the blatant pay inequality between men and women, who play the same sport. Angel McCoughtry, Minnesota Lynx player and five-time WNBA All Star, shared two comments on Twitter revealing the salary of Rocky, the NBA’s Denver Nuggets mascot, stating, “I can learn to be a mascot.”
The WNBA star also compared Rocky’s annual $625,000 (€631,800) to the $228,094 (€230,500) earned by Diana Taurasi (Phoenix Mercury), a three-time WNBA winner and five-time Olympic gold medalist, the highest paid player in the WNBA, alongside Jewell Loyd (Seattle Storm) and Breanna Stewart (Phoenix Mercury). The lowest paid player in the WNBA is Kaela Davis with $1,607.
If the average salary of a player in the WNBA is $102,120 per year, the average salary of a player in the NBA is approximately $8.5 million, with ten stars receiving more than $42 million, in a list led by Stephen Curry (48 million).
“The pay gap between mascots and elite athletes says a lot about how the sports industry views female athletes,” said Caroline Fitzgerald, founder of goals.
According to Sports shops dayl, NBA animators earn an average of 66,000 eruos, with Rocky earning three times the highest paid in the WNBA. Harry, the mascot of the Atlanta Hawks, makes $606,000 and Benny, the bull of the Chicago Bulls, makes $404,000 a year.
But Rocky is not just any mascot. Chosen in a competition in 1990, the mountain lion, which fans call SuperMascot Rocky, turned out to be a real athlete in an uncomfortable suit. Fly off trampolines to make dunks, do somersaults before basketing and score with your back to the basket. He was inducted into the Mascots Hall of Fame in 2008 and is the “father” of the Pistons’ mascot Hooter.
To be a pet you must have experience, athleticism and full availability. Each NBA season has 82 games, 41 of which are at home. Therefore, they must be available and ready for a 48-minute show at least 41 times a year. They need to know how to dance, act, do gymnastic moves and make you laugh. And all this with a dose of madness.
The atmosphere of the pavilions wins competitions and that is why the ability to entertain the stands is so well paid.
Source: DN
