I just ran into Breanna

[fatlucy]

She was in the same restaurant where I’m having dinner in LA so I ran up to her to give her some much needed love. She was on a scooter to keep her foot elevated. She was so nice but really really sad. We need to send her some love. I didn’t take a picture just said hi and thanked her for all the great memories.

 

[Sargassoc]

I think the WNBA (NBA, really) has only itself to blame. If they paid these women like the Russian/Turkish/Chinese teams, they wouldn’t have to play year round. Losing your MVP to injury on another team is not a good look for the league.

Maybe we can send Stewie some get-well cards. I just wouldn’t know where to send mine.

 

[EricLA]

I think the WNBA (NBA, really) has only itself to blame. If they paid these women like the Russian/Turkish/Chinese teams, they wouldn’t have to play year round. Losing your MVP to injury on another team is not a good look for the league.

What look would you like the league to realistically have?

 

[winlots]

She was in the same restaurant where I’m having dinner in LA so I ran up to her to give her some much needed love. She was on a scooter to keep her foot elevated. She was so nice but really really sad. We need to send her some love. I didn’t take a picture just said hi and thanked her for all the great memories.

 

[reno tony]

One of my favorite topics while referring to the WNBA is how everyone wants to spend the owner's money. People know how to manage a team and what should be done to correct all the issues the W has. Bless all of you that can do that because I certainly can't.

 

[BobbyJ]

I think the WNBA (NBA, really) has only itself to blame. If they paid these women like the Russian/Turkish/Chinese teams, they wouldn’t have to play year round. Losing your MVP to injury on another team is not a good look for the league.

Maybe we can send Stewie some get-well cards. I just wouldn’t know where to send mine.

Don't know how the WNBA is going to pay them like that. At the end of the 2016 season after 20 years in existence, half the league was losing money. Their TV contract is only $25M a year and the ratings are terrible. This year's NCAA title game drew 3.5M viewers and the WNBA championship series only averaged 487,000 a game. And no foreign billionaires are going to come to the rescue.

 

[willtalk]

If certain rich feminists would put their money where their mouths were, they could buy some of the struggling teams to help them out.

 

[KnightBridgeAZ]

If certain rich feminists would put their money where their mouths were, they could buy some of the struggling teams to help them out.

Why should they? They should support the league with advertising and such if they own companies, but I don't see a lot of money-making opportunities there. If I don't expect the NBA to operate the league as a charity, I certainly don't think individuals should.

It is a shame, but the bottom line is (and I hate this fact) the WNBA will be a curiosity - it will have its small devoted fan base and won't attract many more.

If you consider college basketball (and even just half of D1, lets say) you still have 175 fan bases funneling into the total "over all" fan base (and audience for TV games, etc.). The W has what - 12 teams or so? And the teams have a limited opportunity to attract fans from other than the immediate area (not 175 areas) - especially given the limited TV exposure. They do a good job of internet view opportunities, but I think most folks don't go to watching things on the internet that they don't have an interest in watching in the first place.

I enjoyed when we were in NJ and went to Liberty games (I have enjoyed treking to Phoenix for a couple of Mercury games) - but in general, I just can't get up ambition to follow the W or watch games. It is a shame.

 

[Reypl21]

I love women's college basketball. I try to watch the WNBA. The public perception is that the league is an afterthought laughing stock. I think the product can be extremely high when you watch certain teams. The amount of reception and respect the WNBA has is awful. I can't imagine a reality where the WNBA can pay the overseas prices. Stewart was definitely the biggest wake up call for the league to act, which is so unfortunate. She has the potential to be the best player ever!!! Period! But this will hamper that.

I'm sure the WNBA would love to pay the players enough to rest their bodies, but they can't. There isn't enough fans. There isn't enough people willing to go to games. I have no clue how to lessen the negative perception the league has. I like any Facebook post that has to do with WBB, because that means that the pages are acknowledging WBB. But the comments are just so disparaging. Not enough people are fans to keep the players here. If I were the players, I would play overseas, and rest during the WNBA season. Every year. They make better money and can rest while at home. The players feel an obligation to compete in the WNBA, but it's just not worth it.

 

[stamfordhusky]

I think the WNBA (NBA, really) has only itself to blame. If they paid these women like the Russian/Turkish/Chinese teams, they wouldn’t have to play year round. Losing your MVP to injury on another team is not a good look for the league.

Since the WNBA has very little revenue, what do you suggest they do? Would you be willing to write a few six figure checks to keep a few of these players home?

 

[Orangutan]

Maybe at some point we can make an "arguing about the WNBA's finances" megathread so that we don't have to have the same tired discussion in 50 different threads.

The season is a month away and I'm already exhausted by this conversation.

 

[oldude]

This is simply a marketplace issue. If American WBB players want to make money, they have to travel overseas. The same thing is true for top US soccer players, track & field athletes, cyclists and other sports as well. From an international perspective, in MBB, baseball, golf, etc. the big money is in the US. I don’t see this situation changing anytime soon.

The bigger concern is playing b-ball year round. There is no down time to rest and strengthen tired muscles and joints. This isn’t just a problem at the pro level. Young basketball players like Azzi Fudd complete their HS season and then immediately start playing in 3x3 tournaments, summer AAU and for USA basketball. It’s a wonder there aren’t more injuries.

 

[Charliebball]

If certain rich feminists would put their money where their mouths were, they could buy some of the struggling teams to help them out.

how about the OWBA ............................the Oprah Winfrey Basketball Association

 

[Bama fan]

Poor Stewie just got lost in this thread. I hope she recovers fully and continues to be the inspirational player and person she has become.

 

[JellyBean]

Lucky rascal! Glad that you were able to offer some love and support to Breanna during this rough patch. A lot of the WNBA players that I have met here in Minnesota over the years are very cool. Like you, I never try to take a picture of them...well there was that one time when I ran into Maya Moore. Thank goodness she did not have me arrested But these ladies are real cool and down to earth. Sometimes they need that positive vibe from the folks. Its not all about sports sometimes.

 

[terif831]

The WNBA only exists because of the ABL, a women's pro league that played during the regular basketball season. The NBA was having none of that - didn't want any pro basketball that wasn't played under their own auspices - so created the WNBA. At that time, part of the draw for players to choose the WNBA over the ABL was that it was a summer league - so they could play at home, then play overseas to make some real money - because the ABL, as a new creation, wasn't able to pay the players well, either. So, after just a few seasons, the ABL went bankrupt.
Would the ABL have continued to be viable if not for the WNBA? We'll never know how much of the ABL's financial woes were caused by the creation of the WNBA. But now the NBA has its women's league that it never really wanted, which I'm sure accounts for at least SOME of the reason why it struggles.

 

[terif831]

I'm so sad for Stewie. She's at the top of her game and something like this happens! But, as we all know, she's a strong lady. I'm betting she's going to use this time off from basketball to do some special things.

 

[Fairfield Fan]

If Europe can create a strong, viable women's pro basketball league with big salaries for the athletes, America can do the same. Absolutely no reason on God's green earth that we can't.

 

[psconn]

The Breanna Stewart injury highlights urgent need for player-favorable CBA