Australian basketball player Alanna Smith has made history by signing the richest contract by an Australian woman in a team sport.
On Sunday, Smith, 29, signed a three-year contract with the Dallas Wings, valued at $US3.68 million ($AUS5.2 million).
First reported by ESPN, Smith’s deal is part of a historic new WNBA collective bargaining agreement which was reached last month after more than a year of negotiations between players, unions and league officials. During that time, players threatened to strike and wore T-shirts saying, “Pay us what you owe us”.
The Dallas Wings’ general manager Curt Miller described Smith as the team’s “top target”.
“As the reigning Co-Defensive Player of the Year, she is one of the top two-way players in the WNBA who consistently impacts both sides of the ball,” Miller said in a statement.
“From a defensive standpoint, Alanna gives our coaching staff unbelievable versatility — she can play multiple coverages and drastically affect shots around the paint. Offensively — we are excited to pair her with our outstanding guards, showcasing her ability to play inside or outside.”
In an Instagram post, Smith, who hails from Melbourne said: “It’s hard to put into words what my time in Minnesota has meant to me. This team and this city embraced me and I am so grateful for all the love and support and how this Aussie girl was welcomed with open arms. Forever will hold a special place in my heart.”
Speaking to the Herald on Sunday, she said, “It doesn’t feel real, to be honest.”
“You put so much hard work into your craft and to be rewarded for it is pretty cool. I just feel grateful to be in this position and hopefully lead the way for other women to get what they deserve as well.”
Last season, Smith was named co-Defensive Player of the Year. She played for the Indiana Fever and Chicago Sky before signing with the Minnesota Lynx for one season in 2024. She graduated from Stanford in 2019 with a psychology degree and won a bronze medal with Australia at the Paris Olympics.
Her agent, Sammy Wloszczowski said, “I think the contract is really just a statement of what makes Alanna, Alanna.”
“You don’t get through what she’s been through without a certain make-up, without a certain amount of fight, a certain amount of strength of character, the resilience to go from having every one of those career aspirations pulled from you and to go back and get them all back.”
“I think every female basketballer and every Aussie female basketballer helped pave the way to get where we are this year. It feels like we’ve finally crossed a threshold where we’ve taken a substantial leap closer to fair remuneration for the work and for being in the top 0.01 per cent in the world for what they do for a living.”
WNBL advisor and basketball legend Lauren Jackson welcomed the latest deals, saying, “It’s incredible that they’re able to capitalise now the way that they are off basketball, and that equity that we’ve been talking about for forever, it’s starting to pay off for them.”
“There’s still a long way to go until they’re paid what they’re worth, but this is a major, major, major milestone,” she said. “The money is life-changing.”
Fellow Aussie Ezi Magbegor has also received a new offer — a one-year deal from her current team, the Seattle Storm, worth up to $US1.4 million ($AUD2.2 million) for one season, though she is yet to accept the offer.