If ever there was a critical moment in time marking the future success or failure of the WNBA, this is it. So far, it isn’t going very well. There is still time to choose the right course, but the collective will to do so may not exist.
Since its inception in 1996, the league has enjoyed a modicum of success. It has a loyal fan base, the backing of the NBA, games in big city arenas, and numerous corporate sponsorships.
However, the monetary side is a vastly different story. The league has never turned a profit and has lost money every year of its existence. It is kept afloat in large part by an annual infusion of money from its male counterpart, the NBA. As a sports entertainment enterprise, it simply does not draw enough interest to break even financially.
The league is in desperate need of a larger fan base. To get that, they need a spark of excitement that is uniquely theirs, similar to what draws so many viewers to the NBA.
Recently, the rare combination of buzz and thrill was delivered to the WNBA on a silver platter in the form of Caitlin Clark. The media frenzy around Clark has been at a fever pitch for most of this year. She led her college team to the National Championship game, which for the first time in history drew more viewers than the men’s National Championship game. Her stats are off the charts, her talent plainly obvious, and her demeanor perfectly suited for an ambassador of the game.
All that the league had to do was embrace this gift it was given and lean into it to the greatest extent possible. There are a bunch of new fans and a pile of money just waiting at the doorstep. Inexplicably, it is doing almost exactly the opposite.
Caitlin Clark has been subjected to a hazing of particularly hard fouls, jealousy of her “instant” fame, and chatter about her sexuality. Worst of all, she is being judged by some in the league as having an unfair advantage because of her “whiteness”. All of this is combining to make Clark out to be a villain, an interloper in a “clique” that wants nothing to do with her.
There are three words for how the WNBA is reacting to Caitlin Clark – stupid, stupid and stupid. It doesn’t matter why some of the WNBA players want to bring Clark down. The fact that they are doing it at all is what is so spectacularly dumb. Clark may not end up being the ultimate savior the league has been in desperate need of, but she is presently bringing more eyeballs and fanfare to the game than anyone else has in 27 years.
The WNBA might want to take a business lesson from their NBA brethren – embrace and celebrate new talent no matter where it comes from or what color it is. Take advantage of the value and opportunity great new players bring and feature them whenever possible to continue building the fan base.
The WNBA needs to think and act more like a business that wants to survive. If it is going to value social, racial, and sorority-style hazing more than smart business decisions, it will fail. In the process, the players will dramatically weaken their case for salary parity with their male counterparts in the NBA. Let’s hope the WBNA doesn’t go down the same path of self-immolation that we’ve seen some other enterprises follow in the last few years.
One Response
I saw the Roller Derby implode I 1973 after having a crowd of 55000 plus people at a game in the old Chicago Comiskey park by gooning the game.
I am watching closely.