Team USA fighting for respect

[HuskyNan]

You'd think the UConn (& Tenn) alums would be used to the high expectations.

Taurasi: U.S. women fighting for respect

 

[easttexastrash]

I read this article and thought it was spot on. Women's basketball is a beautiful sport to watch and these women have spent their lives perfecting their talents. They are the best of the best.

 

[OneTrickPony]

I'll never understand it...much rather watch the WNBA than the NBA...and rather watch the Huskies than either one...

If you like grappling, MMA is a better product!

 

[EricLA]

Great article...

Despite the Olympic team not getting the respect that the players feel they've earned, women's basketball has made great strides in the U.S. since 1996. The WNBA began a year later and is celebrating its 16th season. Three of the teams in the league have turned profits and attendance is up for the fifth straight season.

I did not know how many, if any, WNBA teams turned a profit. Nice to see it's 3 of them. Hope to see that number continue to go up, and for attendance to continue to rise. I actually agree with Onetrick, but an overwhelming majority of fans prefer the game to be played above the rim and prefer the NBA. In a way i'm surprised the WNBA hasn't put a team in Louisville or Iowa - not sure if it would translate, but L'ville and ISU have had fantastic WCBB attendance, ISU especially, for many years. Tulsa seemed like an odd choice to me at the time, but I have no idea how that works in the WNBA. ​

 

[easttexastrash]

Great article...

Despite the Olympic team not getting the respect that the players feel they've earned, women's basketball has made great strides in the U.S. since 1996. The WNBA began a year later and is celebrating its 16th season. Three of the teams in the league have turned profits and attendance is up for the fifth straight season.

I did not know how many, if any, WNBA teams turned a profit. Nice to see it's 3 of them. Hope to see that number continue to go up, and for attendance to continue to rise. I actually agree with Onetrick, but an overwhelming majority of fans prefer the game to be played above the rim and prefer the NBA. In a way i'm surprised the WNBA hasn't put a team in Louisville or Iowa - not sure if it would translate, but L'ville and ISU have had fantastic WCBB attendance, ISU especially, for many years. Tulsa seemed like an odd choice to me at the time, but I have no idea how that works in the WNBA. ​

I agree. I never understood the Tulsa decision. That kind of seemed like the least likely city to put a team. I apologize to any OK posters here, but Tulsa??? How can there not be a team near the Tennessee fanbase? Talk about not tapping into a women's basketball market. Or, maybe they wouldn't support a team that had ANY UCONN players?

 

[OneTrickPony]

Great article...

Despite the Olympic team not getting the respect that the players feel they've earned, women's basketball has made great strides in the U.S. since 1996. The WNBA began a year later and is celebrating its 16th season. Three of the teams in the league have turned profits and attendance is up for the fifth straight season.

I did not know how many, if any, WNBA teams turned a profit. Nice to see it's 3 of them. Hope to see that number continue to go up, and for attendance to continue to rise. I actually agree with Onetrick, but an overwhelming majority of fans prefer the game to be played above the rim and prefer the NBA. In a way i'm surprised the WNBA hasn't put a team in Louisville or Iowa - not sure if it would translate, but L'ville and ISU have had fantastic WCBB attendance, ISU especially, for many years. Tulsa seemed like an odd choice to me at the time, but I have no idea how that works in the WNBA. ​

That's a good question Eric...I first started watch women's bball when I was in Des Moines during the girl's high school tourney...still had the old rules back in the 1970's but the crowds were big!

 

[OneTrickPony]

I agree. I never understood the Tulsa decision. That kind of seemed like the least likely city to put a team. I apologize to any OK posters here, but Tulsa??? How can there not be a team near the Tennessee fanbase? Talk about not tapping into a women's basketball market. Or, maybe they wouldn't support a team that had ANY UCONN players?

Don't they need an NBA team nearby...still doesn't explain Tulsa v OK City, though...

 

[Wbbfan1]

IMHO Knoxville would support a WNBA team even if it did have a UConn player on it. The team would have to do what the Sun have done and have at least two or three Tenn players on it. Don't understand why two or three investors in the Knoxville area haven't ponied up the dollars to get a team to Knoxville. In the scheme of things, its not a lot of money. I would have put a team in Knoxville before Atlanta.

 

[Outside Shot]

I love wbb as much as anyone, but I am fully cognizant that it is a niche sport. What will qualify as "respect" or "enough of it"? They (DT, Geno and whoever else) are INCREDIBLY lucky to have gotten wealthy and to make a living in a niche sport.

 

[alexrgct]

I still haven't heard which three teams were profitable. The Sun in 2010 were the first W team to turn a profit, so I assume they're one of them. Don't know about the other two. The Sun are in a unique situation, but the other two may represent a model other franchises can follow.

I have no idea where in Iowa you could put a team in a summer league. When it's cold in Ames with nothing to do, a WBB game sounds good. In the all-too-short summer in Iowa City? No way. Louisville, maybe, but it's a college sports town that practically gives tickets away. Without a profitable NBA franchise or rich athletic department to support it, that's not a sustainable model. Agree that Nashville could probably sustain a franchise, though I'm not sure what facility is available. Maybe Memphis?

 

[HuskyNan]

I still haven't heard which three teams were profitable. The Sun in 2010 were the first W team to turn a profit, so I assume they're one of them. Don't know about the other two. The Sun are in a unique situation, but the other two may represent a model other franchises can follow.

According to this article, Connecticut, San Antonio and Minnesota are the teams making a profit.

 

[speedoo]

I still haven't heard which three teams were profitable. The Sun in 2010 were the first W team to turn a profit, so I assume they're one of them. Don't know about the other two. The Sun are in a unique situation, but the other two may represent a model other franchises can follow.

I have no idea where in Iowa you could put a team in a summer league. When it's cold in Ames with nothing to do, a WBB game sounds good. In the all-too-short summer in Iowa City? No way. Louisville, maybe, but it's a college sports town that practically gives tickets away. Without a profitable NBA franchise or rich athletic department to support it, that's not a sustainable model. Agree that Nashville could probably sustain a franchise, though I'm not sure what facility is available. Maybe Memphis?

Assuming roughly equal costs for most of the franchises, profitability would require strong revenues from game attendance (a function of both volume and average ticket prices), game broadcast revenue (national broadcast revenue is most likely better for the better teams) which would include radio and local TV, and "other" which would include advertising, sales of non-game related goodies, etc.

I think the teams best positioned to achieve solid revenue would be Seattle, Connecticut and Minnesota, based on both their success, and what appears to be more competent management, which would be particularly true of Seattle.

Other franchises that potentially could rival those two IMO would be, in order, LA, San Antonio, Chicago, Atlanta, Phoenix and Indiana. A couple of franchises that should potentially be profitable are NY and Washington, but those two need to completely overhaul their rosters and management, IMO.

Tulsa IMO is very unlikely to ever be profitable.