Nika Muhl’s season in Turkey has ended in perhaps the most unfortunate way - and placed her participation in the 2025 WNBA season in immediate doubt.
The 23-year-old was injured playing her first game for Besiktas in the SuperCup Women’s matchup against her Seattle Storm teammate Gabby Williams and Fenerbahce on Thursday.
The Croatian star scored 11 points, on 3 of 4 shooting from beyond the arc, and had nine assists, three rebounds and two steals in front of a barren crowd. Of note, the stadium was nearly empty because spectators threw firecrackers and other devices on the court the day before.
In the third quarter, however, Muhl went down with a knee injury while scurrying for a rebound. As she lay on the court, screaming “Oh my God!” as the medical teams tended to her injury, it was decided she needed to be taken off the court on a stretcher to determine the severity of the damage.
Though Muhl joined her team to congratulate Williams and Fenerbahce on the win, it was revealed that the star suffered a torn ACL in her first game in Turkey in the worst possible outcome immediately after ending her rookie season in the WNBA.
“I congratulate our girls for their struggle,” Ozkan Arseven, the Chief Executive Officer of Besiktas posted on X . “Today, Nika’s injury has ruined all our morale. We have learned from the MRI and check-ups that there is a rupture in her anterior cruciate ligaments. Unfortunately, our players has closed the season. I wish her a speedy recovery.”
Considering when she sustained the injury and how long it usually takes athletes to recover from a torn ACL - anywhere between nine months to a full year depending on the severity - Muhl is more than likely to miss the entirety of the 2025 WNBA season.
After only playing 16 games in the WNBA this season , it appears as if Muhl will have to wait more than a year to return to the court.
Muhl was playing in Turkey after the WNBA season ended and it could be safely assumed that the 23-year-old was doing so to supplement her income. The star rookie made under $70,000 in her first season and her average salary on her four-year deal with the Storm is $74,261.
Her rookie salary calls to mind WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert’s claims that some players in the league made upwards of $700,000 without endorsements. As it stands, Jackie Young is the league’s highest-paid player at $252,450.
Because of the vast difference in pay , players like Muhl and Williams are forced to play overseas after the WNBA season ends in order to afford a living. The lack of appropriate pay is something Williams called Engelbert out on during her exit interview with the Storm.
READ MORE: Gabby Williams calls out WNBA commissioner for false narrative about player pay
READ MORE: Nika Muhl can't say what Diana Taurasi told her after first WNBA basket
"The W[NBA] thinks that they don't have to pay us more in order for us to be here. And I think I didn't express that when I first talked about prioritization," she said at the time. "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.
“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. The WNBA, if you want us to be here, you have to pay us more. It's business, it's how it works, and that's all that means.”
And because of how the business is run, one of the WNBA’s most promising young stars will be out for the foreseeable future. Considering how the WNBA’s CBA could expire after the 2025 season, the days of stars playing overseas to make ends meet could be a thing of the past.
Local News
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