Men's vs Women's Game

[OldAlum]

Okay, parade is on, turkey preparations are beginning, taking a break to think about basketball!

There was some discussion on another thread about the differences in men's and women's BB games and the appeal to fans. What are your thoughts?

I can see that the men's game is more in-your-face, strutting and slamming excitement. You don't have to know much about BB to appreciate that aspect. Like a video game, it really appeals to kids. The women's game depends more upon execution and strategy. Less bravado and posturing. It appeals more to those who really enjoy the game of basketball and its intricacies.

To get more fans to the women's games? IDK really. It seems many women's teams are not marketed at all!

 

[phil sampieri]

Okay, parade is on, turkey preparations are beginning, taking a break to think about basketball!

There was some discussion on another thread about the differences in men's and women's BB games and the appeal to fans. What are your thoughts?

I can see that the men's game is more in-your-face, strutting and slamming excitement. You don't have to know much about BB to appreciate that aspect. Like a video game, it really appeals to kids. The women's game depends more upon execution and strategy. Less bravado and posturing. It appeals more to those who really enjoy the game of basketball and its intricacies.

To get more fans to the women's games? IDK really. It seems many women's teams are not marketed at all!

 

[phil sampieri]

It seems that many UC womens basketball fans are of age, Several of my friends of age who played or coached back in the day, appreciate the way the women play below the rim with the crispness we were all taught as youngsters, what concerns me is that 50-60 years from now, that oldster will only be able to relate to todays men's game and what they were taught, use your athletic ability get open and shoot it.JMO

 

[mauconnfan]

"You don't have to know much about BB to appreciate the aspect"?? Hmmmm are you saying men's basketball fans know less about the game than the women's based on the fact the women "execute and strategize".

I know this topic never goes well but I'm guessing we see now why. I really enjoy the game of basketball, REALLy enjoy it. And i can't watch more than 3-4 games a year in close to full of the UConn women and I like them. I don't miss a second of the men's nor do I miss time to see men's college hoops games in all parts of the country in any league. Can you honestly as a women's fan watch Fresno St ladies play Long Beach State and enjoy it? Never mind if I brought up Stonybrook vs QU, which I would enjoy in the men's game.

I do not want to say one is better than the other for anyone it's just an awful assumption and dowright wrong to say women's basketball executes better and strategies more, never mind the laughable thoughts of it being more enjoyable to hose who "enjoy the game of basketball and it's intricasies"? The intricacies of executing against teams so far inferior night after night is really that enjoyable? To each their own!

How about we just say most women's fans enjoy the women's game more and men's fan's visa versi?

 

[mauconnfan]

It seems that many UC womens basketball fans are of age, Several of my friends of age who played or coached back in the day, appreciate the way the women play below the rim with the crispness we were all taught as youngsters, what concerns me is that 50-60 years from now, that oldster will only be able to relate to todays men's game and what they were taught, use your athletic ability get open and shoot it.JMO

Listen to yourself. "only be able to use their athletic ability to get open and shoot it" Shame on them for doing that.

I'm 55 and was taught the way you say, played through college and nothing has changed in the mens game but the men have grown up faster, played more basketball and have become more athletic. Why not change with the times rather than live in the past. They still run, jump, pass and shoot. Women have also evolved from what I see, the game is much faster in the better programs and may eventually shock you when it becomes more than what you see today. Everything trends!

 

[phil sampieri]

"You don't have to know much about BB to appreciate the aspect"?? Hmmmm are you saying men's basketball fans know less about the game than the women's based on the fact the women "execute and strategize".

I know this topic never goes well but I'm guessing we see now why. I really enjoy the game of basketball, REALLy enjoy it. And i can't watch more than 3-4 games a year in close to full of the UConn women and I like them. I don't miss a second of the men's nor do I miss time to see men's college hoops games in all parts of the country in any league. Can you honestly as a women's fan watch Fresno St ladies play Long Beach State and enjoy it? Never mind if I brought up Stonybrook vs QU, which I would enjoy in the men's game.

I do not want to say one is better than the other for anyone it's just an awful assumption and dowright wrong to say women's basketball executes better and strategies more, never mind the laughable thoughts of it being more enjoyable to hose who "enjoy the game of basketball and it's intricasies"? The intricacies of executing against teams so far inferior night after night is really that enjoyable? To each their own!

How about we just say most women's fans enjoy the women's game more and men's fan's visa versi?

 

[phil sampieri]

I agree let the men's fans enjoy and women's fans enjoy their game. My comments were not meant to disparage the men's game as it's played today but to say us old farts appreciate the style our women play because we like to harkin back. Is there something wrong with that ? Never did say you
knew less about the game either but the more you write the more I may change my mind. Stirring a pot again, you must be bored.

 

[OldAlum]

I did not mean that there is not strategy etc in the men's game, simply that the emphasis and the main reason fans enjoy it is likely different. And, yes, I do find the dunkin' excitement more accessible and interesting to the casual fan.
For me, I probably do not enjoy watching unknown teams, especially if they do not play well, of either gender. I will say that the men's game certainly has more good teams.

 

[mauconnfan]

I agree let the men's fans enjoy and women's fans enjoy their game. My comments were not meant to disparage the men's game as it's played today but to say us old farts appreciate the style our women play because we like to harkin back. Is there something wrong with that ? Never did say you
knew less about the game either but the more you write the more I may change my mind. Stirring a pot again, you must be bored.

Not stirring just reading into it maybe too much......I won't agree on everything but being an old fart, yeah I agree i'm getting there!

Anyway our teams have a lot to be proud of and we need to just enjoy them for what they do so well for us - WIN!

 

[RockyMTblue2]

This can has been kicked around the block a few times, but it is fun. I will venture to say that very few of us gray heads (and I like to call it Swedish blond) came to basketball as fans of the women's game. But back in the day of Hondo, Russell, et al, men's basketball had a lot more subtlety to it than today's game. The players have eclipsed the physical parameters of the court and the hoop. The analogy is far from perfect, but my interest in men's tennis dwindled with the introduction of composite/oversize rackets, too. The game is fast, rough and does not involve a whole lot of team (though the NBA got a lesson on that last season). Look at all the injuries in the NBA sidelining "great" players this year. This game of mayhem is shortening careers. Another reason to turn away from the men's game, the 'Melo phenomenon.

We all know why we like the WCBB game, so I won't bore you with the usual. Another reason: never heard a women's game star refer to herself in the 3rd person.

 

[UConnChapette]

The men's and women's game are very different for a couple of very basic reasons. Physiological make up and anatomy.

During early childhood, girls are often times faster and stronger than boys. I was a sprinter. LOVED to run races. 1st through 4th grade I beat every single boy I raced, even those taller and with longer strides than I. Around 5th grade they started catching up and drawing even. By 6th grade they started blowing my socks off. Men are much stronger than women by the time they reach the teen years. They can jump higher, run faster than women.

As adults, women's hips are broader. Anatomically, this is a good thing otherwise babies would never make it out of the birth canal and the human race would have gone the way of the dinosaurs before they even started. But the wider hips also creates a wider an gle on how the knee joint and femur connect, which is part of the reason why ACL injuries are so much more prevalent n in the women's game than the men's. How often does a jump stop cause an ACL tear in the men's game? Compare that with the number of times it has caused an ACL tear for a woman player.

Men basketball players are also much taller on average than women players. All you need to do is compare the roster of the UConn men's and women's teams.

Men:
Number of players under 6': 0
Number of players between 6' and 6'3: 3
Number of players between 6'4 and 6'7: 5
Number of players 6'8 and over: 4

Women:
Number of players under 6': 7
Number of players between 6' and 6'3: 4
Number of players between 6'4 and 6'7: 2 - tallest is 6'5" and she can't play until next season.

Also consider that the height of the rim is exactly the same for men and women in the NCAA. I am not advocating a rim change, but imagine how different the men's game would be if the NCAA raised the rim height to a height more proportionally aligned with the average height differential that exists with the average women player height.
Likewise, if the rim were lowered in the women's game to be more proportional there would be a lot more dunking, but the fans of the men's game would simply use that as an excuse that they are making accommodations for the women so it isn't "real" basketball.

Comparing the men's and women's game is like comparing apples and oranges. The men's game is a more a power game - because it CAN be. The women's is more finesse and fundamentals - because it mostly HAS to be. That isn't going to change. Many fans of men's basketball are not going to like the slower less physically powerful game of the women's game. And vice versa. That is the way it is and ever shall be.

Comparing the men's and women's games is pretty silly. They have the objective of putting the ball in the hole is the same. How it gets done is very different.

 

[Tenspro2002]

I am probably in the 10th percentile for age of a women's college basketball fan and the 40th percentile for the age of a men's college basketball fan. I appreciate both -- it's about the competition, rooting for a winner. I have trouble getting into the NBA, where the regular season is a low-effort walkthrough. It's not about the aesthetics of the game.

 

[HuskyNan]

We're talking two different sports with similar rules and equipment, kind of like baseball and softball. Neither men's nor women's basketball is better than the other, just different. The men are more athletic and much quicker; since the women have physical limitations, they play a more deliberate game that can be quite pretty when played at the elite level. And that women don't play above the rim isn't because of principle, it's because they can't, for the most part.

I LOVED last year's UConn men's team. Great, great teamwork, outstanding defense and an awesome chemistry by a bunch of likable players made them fun to watch - just like the UConn women.

 

[tomcat]

"You don't have to know much about BB to appreciate the aspect"?? Hmmmm are you saying men's basketball fans know less about the game than the women's based on the fact the women "execute and strategize".

I know this topic never goes well but I'm guessing we see now why. I really enjoy the game of basketball, REALLy enjoy it. And i can't watch more than 3-4 games a year in close to full of the UConn women and I like them. I don't miss a second of the men's nor do I miss time to see men's college hoops games in all parts of the country in any league. Can you honestly as a women's fan watch Fresno St ladies play Long Beach State and enjoy it? Never mind if I brought up Stonybrook vs QU, which I would enjoy in the men's game.

I do not want to say one is better than the other for anyone it's just an awful assumption and dowright wrong to say women's basketball executes better and strategies more, never mind the laughable thoughts of it being more enjoyable to hose who "enjoy the game of basketball and it's intricasies"? The intricacies of executing against teams so far inferior night after night is really that enjoyable? To each their own!

How about we just say most women's fans enjoy the women's game more and men's fan's visa versi?

I love it when people suggest that a simple statement like "You don't have to know much about BB to appreciate the sport" means that fans of men's BB don't know as much as fans of women's BB.

Of course the poster did not mean that. It means that people who do not know the intricacies of the game are more likely to be attracted to the men's game because of the "in your face" aspect of it. Potential fans who know about those things may like the men's game or they may like the women's. But if you take someone who knows nothing about BB and show them a men's game and a women's game, they likely will find the women's game "boring," because it does not have the WWE aspects that such fans will initially be attracted to.

They also will tend to think that the men's game and women's game is the same game with differently constructed people playing it. This is not the case. What is the case is that because the people who play the women's game are differently constructed, the game is -- and should be -- fundamentally different. It often takes people a lifetime to figure that out, and some people never do. Just witness the idiots who insisted that UConn's breaking the UCLA record was an insult to John Wooden. Anyone who knew the women's game knew that it's a different sport at a different time, and breaking the Wooden record, while a great accomplishment, said nothing about Wooden's record and what it took to achieve it.

I'd agree that "To each his or her own" is the way to go. In my case, unless it is the early rounds of the NCAA men's tournament, when upsets are fun to think about, I'd rather watch a well-matched women's game than the equivalent men's game. The way the men's game is constructed now, the idea appears to be a combination of rollerball and WWE, and that just does not appeal to me. I know I have used that comparison before, but it still holds true, IMHO.

 

[cockhrnleghrn]

I'd say the biggest difference between the men's and women's game is more due to depth of talent than anything else. Yes, the women's game contains more finesse and almost no dunking, but the biggest difference to me is that there aren't as many top players in the women's game, which results in a lot of poor matches. Huge upsets are relatively rare in the women's game while they are commonplace in the men's game because there isn't as big a talent differential between top and middle-of-the-road teams. Top women's teams are very enjoyable to watch, but once you move out of the top 25, the quality goes downhill rapidly and fans lose interest. If you click the link below, go to misc. reports>attendance and sort by average attendance, you can see how quickly average attendance decreases from the top teams.

http://stats.ncaa.org/rankings?sport_code=WBB&division=1#

 

[Phillyconn]

Okay, parade is on, turkey preparations are beginning, taking a break to think about basketball!

There was some discussion on another thread about the differences in men's and women's BB games and the appeal to fans. What are your thoughts?

I can see that the men's game is more in-your-face, strutting and slamming excitement. You don't have to know much about BB to appreciate that aspect. Like a video game, it really appeals to kids. The women's game depends more upon execution and strategy. Less bravado and posturing. It appeals more to those who really enjoy the game of basketball and its intricacies.

To get more fans to the women's games? IDK really. It seems many women's teams are not marketed at all!

I love both men's and women's basketball but I only watch teams that I like. Difference is that UCONN is the ONLY women's basketball team that I like/love.

 

[watanabe]

Listen to yourself. "only be able to use their athletic ability to get open and shoot it" Shame on them for doing that.

I'm 55 and ....

And I thought from your avatar that you were a young caucasian women in a bikini. Are you a guy???

 

[huskyblooz]

I can't watch the NBA nor the WNBA, though I did like the Spurs' run last season and enjoy Seth Curry.
I prefer good passing, unselfish basketball.
The college game leans this way. I try not to miss a UCONN game (men or women), but I don't watch many other women's games.
I wouldn't say the women's game has better fundamentals. It's just a different game, where the women have to make up for their lack of vertical athleticism with
more player & ball movement. To me, I like this more than a clear-out, one-on-one game.

 

[Ellie]

Okay, parade is on, turkey preparations are beginning, taking a break to think about basketball!

There was some discussion on another thread about the differences in men's and women's BB games and the appeal to fans. What are your thoughts?

I can see that the men's game is more in-your-face, strutting and slamming excitement. You don't have to know much about BB to appreciate that aspect. Like a video game, it really appeals to kids. The women's game depends more upon execution and strategy. Less bravado and posturing. It appeals more to those who really enjoy the game of basketball and its intricacies.

To get more fans to the women's games? IDK really. It seems many women's teams are not marketed at all!

 

[Ellie]

Okay, parade is on, turkey preparations are beginning, taking a break to think about basketball!

There was some discussion on another thread about the differences in men's and women's BB games and the appeal to fans. What are your thoughts?

I can see that the men's game is more in-your-face, strutting and slamming excitement. You don't have to know much about BB to appreciate that aspect. Like a video game, it really appeals to kids. The women's game depends more upon execution and strategy. Less bravado and posturing. It appeals more to those who really enjoy the game of basketball and its intricacies.

To get more fans to the women's games? IDK really. It seems many women's teams are not marketed at all!

Perhaps you should take a gander at last years NBA Championship series with the San Antonio Spurs before you generalize about about lack of execution and strategy.

 

[Geno-ista]

Perhaps you should take a gander at last years NBA Championship series with the San Antonio Spurs before you generalize about about lack of execution and strategy.

They actually executed and had ball movement that you usually don't see in the NBA- executed on offense! The Spurs looked like a typical UConn Women's team we are used to seeing!

 

[OldAlum]

Yep. loved the Spurs! But they were notable for this style of play - so it wasn't "generally" seen. But point taken!

 

[mauconnfan]

I love it when people suggest that a simple statement like "You don't have to know much about BB to appreciate the sport" means that fans of men's BB don't know as much as fans of women's BB.

Of course the poster did not mean that. It means that people who do not know the intricacies of the game are more likely to be attracted to the men's game because of the "in your face" aspect of it. Potential fans who know about those things may like the men's game or they may like the women's. But if you take someone who knows nothing about BB and show them a men's game and a women's game, they likely will find the women's game "boring," because it does not have the WWE aspects that such fans will initially be attracted to.

They also will tend to think that the men's game and women's game is the same game with differently constructed people playing it. This is not the case. What is the case is that because the people who play the women's game are differently constructed, the game is -- and should be -- fundamentally different. It often takes people a lifetime to figure that out, and some people never do. Just witness the idiots who insisted that UConn's breaking the UCLA record was an insult to John Wooden. Anyone who knew the women's game knew that it's a different sport at a different time, and breaking the Wooden record, while a great accomplishment, said nothing about Wooden's record and what it took to achieve it.

I'd agree that "To each his or her own" is the way to go. In my case, unless it is the early rounds of the NCAA men's tournament, when upsets are fun to think about, I'd rather watch a well-matched women's game than the equivalent men's game. The way the men's game is constructed now, the idea appears to be a combination of rollerball and WWE, and that just does not appeal to me. I know I have used that comparison before, but it still holds true, IMHO.

I feel for you! The WWE/rollerball comparison is beyond laughable but I can see the women's glasses you wear won't allow you to look at it any other way.

Enjoy your games!

 

[KnightBridgeAZ]

I feel for you! The WWE/rollerball comparison is beyond laughable but I can see the women's glasses you wear won't allow you to look at it any other way.

Enjoy your games!

I'll agree with you that the WWE / rollerball reference is ridiculous. I don't personally care for men's basketball much, but it isn't because I don't think I am seeing first rate athletes compete with great skill and teamwork. I do think college basketball is a bit more entertaining than the NBA and I do root for Arizona and will even watch part of games. But it is a different sport than women's basketball, which I enjoy more.

I'll also agree with you and others that lower level WBB can be horrible to watch. Not always. Arizona isn't a very good team, for example, but they do play an exciting game, the worst thing about watching the game is the frequent outcome. But, just as you watch various games on TV (men's), I watch various women's and the really enjoyable games are among the better teams.

As you said, men's fans tend to prefer men's BB and women's fans tend to prefer the women's game, some folks like both, and that's probably the way it should be.

 

[uconnfan68]

Not stirring just reading into it maybe too much.I won't agree on everything but being an old fart, yeah I agree i'm getting there!

Anyway our teams have a lot to be proud of and we need to just enjoy them for what they do so well for us - WIN!

And I enjoy all of the teams with UConn on the shirt. The football team has been a little trying of late, but I'll get over it.

 

[reno tony]

Here is a Rebecca Lobo quote from her enshrinement speech concerning this very topic... kind of:
"But two years ago, a year and a half ago, my oldest daughter, who was 4 ½, and my husband was watching UConn men, playing on the television in the living room, and my daughter walked in the room and looked at the TV and said to Steve, Are those boys playing.
And I said, yes.
And my daughter said, I didn't know boys played basketball."
Out of the mouths of babes.

 

[RoyDodger]

I agree let the men's fans enjoy and women's fans enjoy their game. My comments were not meant to disparage the men's game as it's played today but to say us old farts appreciate the style our women play because we like to harkin back. Is there something wrong with that ? Never did say you
knew less about the game either but the more you write the more I may change my mind. Stirring a pot again, you must be bored.

There's something to this, at least from my point of view. Before I started watching the UConn women back in 2003-2004, I almost never watched a basketball game. Period. College, NBA, etc. And then I turned on CT PBS and saw the UConn women and said to my wife: "The women play the game the way I remembered it being played when I was growing up." And that was obviously the game played by men in those days--guys like Cousy, Sharman, Russell, Frazier, Arizin, Robertson, West, Lucas, Baylor, Schayes, and Pettit. Oh, there were the Wilt Chamberlains and Bill Russells of course. But there wasn't a sense that the game was made up of a volley of slam dunks, even from the super tall guys. I may be wrong, but that was my recollection and the reason I became interested in women's basketball.

 

[tomcat]

Well, if the WWE/rollerball example is perhaps a bit...um...over the top, it is mostly because men's basketball has moved (some would say advanced) to the point where all players are so damn big that they have, in effect, cut the size of the court by at least one third. And if you added another foot or two to the height of the basket, that might make things more interesting, at least for me. But more than that is the fact that NBA games are,. to my mind, less athletics than spectacle. I haven't been to many, but that was the overwhelming impression I got. There is, absolutely, a level of personal athleticism that is amazing. But all too often it's about those breakout individual moments, rather than team play. Too many Allen Iversons -- an amazing player, a real gladiator, but the originator of the famous phrase "Practice? You're talkin' about practice?"

Yeah, I know, to each his own.

 

[CL82]

People who don't think there is strategy and execution in the men's game aren't paying attention. The men's size and speed demand it. The speed that you need release the ball if shoot off of a screen is barely enough time to square. Passing lanes open and close in an eye blink. Those plays are executed to perfection. It isn't just a one on one play.

I enjoy the woman's game for what it is, but the men's game is, well for me, more fun to watch. That said, I think it is a mistake to spend a lot of time comparing the two. Best to enjoy each for what they are.

 

[OldAlum]

Interesting to see the different views on the different games. Also interesting to see how different positions are argued and interpreted. Trying to tease out what does draw people to the women's game. Maybe then it could be more effectively marketed.

FWIW to clarify my points again: I was not claiming moral or intellectual superiority for the women's game - simply that the strategy and execution are a bigger aspect due to the way women have to play. Never said men's game didn't use strategy, it is a matter of emphasis.