Rapper, actor, and BIG3 co-founder Ice Cube made headlines in March when he reportedly extended a “historic” $5 million contract offer to Caitlin Clark.
Now he’s revealing the details of the rumored offer, which he says is currently off the table due to “hating” from her team.
On June 13, Ice Cube made an appearance on “The Dan Patrick Show,” where he was asked if the BIG3’s offer to Caitlin Clark still stands.
“Nah, we’ve moved on,” said Cube. “We see that she’s focused on the WNBA and we really didn’t get great engagement from the offer from their team. I think the agents were hating on it a little bit.”
Ice Cube also revealed the details of the offer and their intentions to potentially give Clark an ownership stake in a team.
“It was two years, $5 million a year,” Ice Cube said. “And plus, we were going to do cool stuff with merch and there was even talk about a percentage in team ownership. We believe her coming into the BIG3 would be such a big deal that all boats would rise, and the league would benefit from the attention.”
Currently, no women play in Ice Cube’s BIG3 league.
In an op-ed published in April, BIG3 co-founder Jeff Kwatinetz predicted that the total value of Clark’s contract could exceed $15 million.
“Financially, compared to her paltry WNBA salary, it was a MEGA offer, said Kwatinetz. “Ten million dollars of salary over two years, a percentage of team ownership worth millions, fifty percent of merchandising revenues from her name and likeness, and ownership of a BIG3 documentary with a seven-figure advance. In total, we’re talking fifteen million dollars or more to merely play a ten-game season. While still allowing her to play in the WNBA. The absolute best of both worlds!”
According to Clark, the deal never made it onto her radar until she scrolled through social media. “I found out about the BIG3 thing at the exact time you all did, and my main focus is just on playing basketball,” Clark said on March 29.
Clark was the top overall selection in the 2024 WNBA draft. Her four-year rookie contract is worth a total of $338,056. Her WNBA salary sparked debates on the inequality of female athletes’ salaries. A $5 million figure would be significantly higher than any base salary Clark could garner in the WNBA. The league’s 12 teams’ salaries are capped at an estimated $1,463,200 per team entering this season, according to data from Spotrac.
Nevertheless, some argued the purported offer from the BIG3 did not match the marketing power and exposure Clark would have brought to the table.
“Mostly because the offer is about 40mil short based on the exposure she’d bring,” one person wrote on X.
While others were critical of the way Clark’s representatives responded to the supposed offer.
“Very disappointed to hear that the agents were dismissive of the offer and the league. There are constructive ways to engage while maintaining focus on priorities. Ice Cube is a great guy whose offer/ideas should have been treated respectfully. I hope the league does well,” another person wrote.
There were also some who believed the deal never stood a chance.
“That deal was a publicity stunt,” said one sports fan.
“Ice Cube is so full of sh—. He knows he doesn’t have the money to give her. He knows she would never consider playing in the Big 3. He did this for clout and marketing purposes only,” echoed another.
A third fan simply concluded, “That ship has sailed and now sunk!”
But Clark’s marketing and endorsement deals are set to greatly outpace her WNBA earnings. Her name, image, and likeness (NIL) deals in college were worth more than an estimated $3 million, according to ON3. She continues to receive financial benefits from those deals.
But where she might lack in salary, she will make up for it with partnerships and brand deals. In April, Clark inked a $28 million contract with athletic footwear and apparel corporation Nike. The deal includes a signature shoe, The Wall Street Journal reported.
