The Big Number: $76,535

Her starting pay for the Fever — the Women’s National Basketball Association team that selected her as the No. 1 draft pick on Monday — is part of a four-year contract that will total $338,056.

But to some fans, it still seemed startling low for someone with her star power — especially compared with what her male counterparts in the National Basketball Association make.

The longstanding disparity between the men’s and women’s teams has to do with the leagues’ finances.

The pot of money for players’ salaries is based on a percentage of revenue: While the N.B.A. generates annual revenue of about $10 billion, the W.N.B.A. pulls in about $200 million a year, and the men get a larger percentage of their league’s revenue than the women do.

But that could change, in part because of Clark. Sales of Clark’s Fever jersey at Fanatics, the digital sportswear retailer, broke its draft-night record for any draft pick in any sport. She also drew millions more viewers to ESPN’s coverage of the draft, and teams are anticipating a spike in ticket sales to W.N.B.A. games.

Clark is also likely to have other sources of income. She is nearing a $20 million deal with Nike, according to The Athletic.