Kelsey Plum Reveals Real Reason Behind Leaving $1 Out Of Her Historic Contract

The new CBA terms gave historic contracts to multiple players, with A’ja Wilson setting a WNBA record as the highest earner in the league, while her South Carolina teammate Aliyah Boston signed the maximum value contract. Kelsey Plum was another star eligible for the million-dollar contract, but the player refused the same and took a $999,999 contract.

The one-dollar short became the talk of the town as many even hilariously tried to send the player a dollar for the magic figure. But the player is happy with her ‘below a million dollar’ contract and recently provided reasons for it.

Kelsey Plum Explains ‘Losing’ One Dollar

The two-time champion had been very calculative and held the vice president post in the WNBPA for her decision-making. So an interviewer asked her the reason for her decision to leave a dollar and added that she does everything purposefully.

Smiling at his analysis, Plum said, “Yeah, I mean, first of all, taxes. If you claim like a million dollars, so I saved like $13,000, not claiming a dollar.”

Stop offering Kelsey Plum $1 😂 pic.twitter.com/fmDrmGlAhd

— Austin Franklin (@austinfrankln) May 1, 2026

The player used the US federal income tax brackets tactically and earned more than what she would have earned by claiming a dollar. Also, Plum ‘sacrificed’ for her team, allowing the team to spend more on other players.

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While this is a brilliant reason for leaving the dollar and saving on taxes, the player also added that she didn’t want a validation for signing for a million, and added that she didn’t need to sign for a million to know her value as a player.

Kelsey Plum Making The Most Out Of A Short Dollar

As mentioned, fans looked to give her a dollar, but the player had another brilliant idea to show her satisfaction with the contract. The Olympic medalist shared a post right after signing the contract, shutting down any rumors over the contract value.

In the funny post, the guard shared a picture of a guy holding a dollar bill and hilariously wrote, “I think I found that extra dollar.”

I guess I found that extra dollar 😂 pic.twitter.com/e1nn3nWY6J

— Kelsey Plum (@Kelseyplum10) April 12, 2026

Keeping the contract values discussions aside, the player is now focusing on the WNBA Season and has already played a key role in its first preseason game for an easy victory.