WNBA players sent a message at this year’s All-Star Game in the midst of crucial labor negotiations. But Candace Parker thinks it could have meant much more.

The All-Star Game drew a significant audience this year, even with Caitlin Clark sitting out due to injury. However, the biggest story from the game were the shirts worn by Clark and all the other All-Stars in warm-ups with the message, “Pay Us What You Owe Us.”

As the WNBA All-Star Game commenced, it looked pretty much like any other modern All-Star Game without a ton of effort either way. Team Collier beat Team Clark by an astronomical 151-131 scoreline.

And that’s where Parker thinks the WNBA players could have made their message that much stronger by actually putting forth some effort to play hard, at least harder than what we see in the NBA All-Star Game. In the debut of her multi-generational Post Moves podcast with current Indiana Fever star Aliyah Boston, Parker and Boston debated the impact of the shirts and the game itself.

Candace speaking facts about the All Star game 💯 pic.twitter.com/GglCNPdQlg

— Post Moves with Candace Parker and Aliyah Boston (@PostMovesShow) July 30, 2025

“You all cannot come out there with those shirts of ‘Pay Us What You Owe Us’ and then do that in the All-Star Game,” Parker said.

Boston, herself an All-Star, defended the effort because WNBA players had a quick turnaround to a regular season game in two days time. She said that players earn the paychecks they deserve every night. But Parker argued that the national showcase opportunity was one missed by WNBA players who could have shown something more.

“I think on one of the biggest stages with people tuned in and in an All-Star setting that it was invested in more than any other All-Star Game previously, without Caitlin Clark, right? She was not playing. I think it was an opportunity to really go out there, it was an added opportunity, it’s not going to subtract anything. But I think the narrative on Monday would have been, ‘how come the guys don’t play in the All-Star Game? How come these ladies come out there and they hoop and they understand their responsibility? I just think it would have really maximized the moment of wearing the shirt along with giving the product,” Parker added, before saying that she quickly tuned out of the exhibition contest.

It’s a fascinating point from Candace Parker, and it’s great to see the discussion with a current star in Aliyah Boston where you can see the viewpoint that both sides bring to the table. It’s probably not fair to expect the WNBA players to go above and beyond their male counterparts in an exhibition game that is losing relevance everywhere across sports.

But on the flip side, if the WNBA players are going to make a statement about how much they are worth, it could have drastically flipped the narrative in their favor if they went out and killed it in an ASG setting.