In this topsy-turvy world, the women's basketball tournament is drawing a much bigger audience than the men's basketball tournament, largely thanks to the incredible appeal of Caitlin Clark. Her rematch with Angel Reese in the regional finals drew the largest ESPN television audience for any game, men's or women's. That was until she squared off against Paige Bueckers in the semi-final game against UConn. More than 14 million viewers tuned in, peaking at 17 million viewers. Even the mighty LeBron was watching the game, only to complain about the call on a moving pick that sent Iowa to the Finals against South Carolina today, which no doubt will draw an even bigger audience.
Despite all this attention, alpha males continue to voice their grievances. No longer able to claim that "girls" don't bring in the revenue, they fall back on how they could never compete against NBA players. Luka Doncic threw a bit of cold water on this argument by saying Caitlin shoots a much better three than he does, and that the only comparison in the NBA is Steph Curry.
It would be tempting for an NBA team to draft Caitlin, as she would be an enormous draw, not that it would be the first time. Way back in 1979, the Indiana Pacers drafted Ann Meyers. It was a novelty act, to be sure, but drew a lot of attention. Today, the women are much better players, and at the very least it would be interesting to see a preseason mixed league to spice things up.
The big hope is that the arrival of Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese in the WNBA will lead to a rivalry much like that between Larry Bird and Magic Johnson, which many credit as reviving the NBA in the 1980s. It too was suffering for lack of a television audience but the return of the Boston-LA rivalry with young telegenic stars made the NBA a top television draw again.
The WNBA has never really had the opportunity to flourish, as it is a summer league, and doesn't have a chance to compete for a television audience during the NBA season. In college basketball, the men and women play over the Fall and Winter and the tournaments are concurrent. This helps women's basketball a great deal, as people are willing to give the tournament games a look as they are televised the same weeks. The WNBA season similarly needs to be moved to the Fall and Winter with its playoffs concurrent with the men's playoffs.
I think a large part of what has made women's basketball appealing is that it is driven by fundamentals. These women play basketball the way it should be played and it is very much a team effort. It helps that most women play out their college careers, not turning professional after one or two seasons. The NIL contracts have made it much more enticing to stay in college, as Caitlin banked a cool $3 million this past year, far more than she would make on a rookie contract in the WNBA. Of course, her endorsements will carry over with her so that she will be able to augment the measley $76,000 salary.
For years, the NBA has depressed WNBA salaries, claiming the women don't bring in the revenue to warrant large salaries. It's a facile argument and one often put forward by alpha males to defend their bloated dominance. As a result, women end up playing in Asian and European leagues in the offseason to augment their income. This was how Brittney Griner ended up in Russia, where she made more than $1 million per season at UMMC Ekaterinburg, three times what she made in the WNBA. All that came to an ugly end when she was arrested at a Moscow airport for possession of hash and sentenced to hard labor in a Siberian penal colony. Fortunately, the US was able to negotiate her release and she is back playing in the WNBA.
While the NBA keeps a tight rein on its women's league, college basketball has flourished with its many stars and competitive leagues. The games are real nail-biters like the Iowa-UConn game that came down the final seconds with a moving pick deciding the outcome. That's all everyone is talking about, although it was very clear it was the right call, setting up another epic rematch today between Iowa and South Carolina.
Could the game today break 20 million viewers? If so, the NBA really has something to worry about, as this is far more than any NBA finals over the last 6 years! You have to go back to the 2016 and 2017 Finals when the NBA broke 20 million viewers for a Finals series.
It was not to be, but what a tournament and what a season for Caitlin Clark! Congrats Dawn Staley and the women of South Carolina.
ReplyDeleteWas a great game which I enjoyed very much. Caitlin was my fave college player since Katie Smith of Ohio State. I've been watching womens college bball since the days of Immaculata, Old Dominion, Goucher, Queens College (NY), and UCLA. It may surprise some to learn that there have been times when womens bball was surprisingly popular. During WW I, the womens program outdrew the mens in attendance at the Univ of Minnesota. Also, Google Butch Moore ~ she drew tremendous crowds back in the day.
DeleteI may have mentioned in the past that I lobbied for passage of Title IX many moons ago. At that time I contemplated additional collegiate programs in acrobatic/artistic/rhythmic/team gymnastics & synchronized swimming for women with more cricket, field hockey, and rugby for men. Sadly, we have not had increases in these sports. Instead, we've gotten more womens bball, softball, soccer, but also far fewer mens gymnastics, wrestling, and baseball. Track and field which includes components from both genders has likely been diminished the most. With Title IX we had hoped it would increase opportunities for all, not just in 1 or 2 sports but it wasn't to be.
There's also another problem in the way the law is or has been enforced: you may recall when Muffet McGraw (the former Ann O'Brien of St Joe's in Philly) said she would not hire male coaches in order to make up for deficiencies in hirings for female coaches. That was a clear case of gender based discrimination under the law. Just imagine if I (a Hispanic former baseball player) declared that I wouldn't hire white coaches in order to make up for the lack of Hispanics in coaching - what would the Fox network and other right wingers say? They would have a field day criticizing me for committing such a blatant act of discrimination. Yet, they were silent when McGraw violated the law. To this day the NCAA has never imposed sanctions on her for violating the law. So sad that the law is enforced so selectively.
Anyways, Dawn Staley is a great coach. Many moons ago she actually had to be persuaded to coach bball - at Temple IIRC. She had much success there as well. Thus, no surprise at her team's great success in winning the NCAA.
One last point, re "NBA has depressed WNBA salaries", I'm not sure there is any actual basis for it since the NBA & WNBA are two different corporations. I believe many NBA team owners also have a financial stake in the WNBA but its rules are created in different corporate boards. NBA does subsidize the league which continues to operate at a loss every year. Perhaps Caitlin can charge up interest if she succeeds at the pros which is a considerably more physical league than is the NCAA D1. Let's hope so.
The NBA owns the controlling share of the WNBA. The NBA in conjunction with the owners impose a salary structure that caps salaries throughout the league. For instance, the base rookie salary is $76,000 per year. I suppose there are some incentive bonuses thrown in, depending on how well a player does throughout the season and if she leads her team to the playoffs, which Caitlin is certainly expected to do. For years now, sports pundits have been claiming this is fair because the revenue generated by the WNBA is so low, but here again they play during the summer and very rarely get live coverage, even during the playoffs. That apparently will change this summer given all the interest in Caitlin, Angel, Cameron and other top picks.
Delete''The NBA Board of Governors approved the establishment of the WNBA on April 24, 1996. Just over a year later, eight teams — fully owned by the NBA and paired with existing men’s teams — began playing regulation games ...
Delete{Now} the WNBA and NBA maintain 𝐬𝐞𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐞 ownership structures."
https://www.sportscasting.com/does-the-nba-own-the-wnba/
''𝐂𝐨𝐥𝐥𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐎𝐰𝐧𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐡𝐢𝐩: 𝐔𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐥 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐞𝐧𝐝 𝐨𝐟 𝟐𝟎𝟎𝟐, 𝐛𝐨𝐭𝐡 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐖𝐍𝐁𝐀 𝐭𝐞𝐚𝐦𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐠𝐮𝐞 𝐢𝐭𝐬𝐞𝐥𝐟 𝐰𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐜𝐨𝐥𝐥𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐞𝐥𝐲 𝐨𝐰𝐧𝐞𝐝 𝐛𝐲 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐍𝐁𝐀. 𝐓𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐬𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐞𝐝 𝐨𝐰𝐧𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐡𝐢𝐩 𝐦𝐨𝐝𝐞𝐥 𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐨𝐰𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐍𝐁𝐀 𝐭𝐨 𝐬𝐮𝐩𝐩𝐨𝐫𝐭 𝐰𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐧’𝐬 𝐛𝐚𝐬𝐤𝐞𝐭𝐛𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐦𝐨𝐭𝐞 𝐠𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫 𝐞𝐪𝐮𝐚𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐲 𝐢𝐧 𝐬𝐩𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐬.
𝐃𝐢𝐯𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭: 𝐇𝐨𝐰𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫, 𝐚𝐟𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐖𝐍𝐁𝐀’𝐬 𝐢𝐧𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐚𝐥 𝐲𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐬, 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐍𝐁𝐀 𝐝𝐞𝐜𝐢𝐝𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐨 𝐝𝐢𝐯𝐞𝐬𝐭 𝐢𝐭𝐬𝐞𝐥𝐟 𝐨𝐟 𝐨𝐰𝐧𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐡𝐢𝐩.''
source:
https://www.bing.com/chat?q=did+the+nba+divest+itself+of+the+wnba&cvid=05ae959656084a969f21155852d10920&gs_lcrp=EgZjaHJvbWUyBggAEEUYOTIGCAEQABhAMgYIAhAAGEAyBggDEAAYQDIGCAQQABhAMgYIBRAAGEAyBggGEAAYQDIGCAcQABhAMgYICBAAGEDSAQkxMTMxMGowajSoAgiwAgE&FORM=ANAB01&PC=U531&showconv=1
Thus, the NBA has divested itself of the WNBA and is not obligated to create or finance a salary structure for that league.
Interestingly, Caitlin has just signed a contract that will pay her close to $400K per annum. This is below NBA standards. But she will make millions in endorsements.
The NBA divested itself of the WNBA precisely because of this matter ~ if it hadn't it would be forced to pay the women the same salaries as the men even though they generate FAR less revenue than do the men.
Correction: NBA owners still have a sizeable stake in the WNBA and rule the league with an iron fist,
Deletehttps://www.sportico.com/business/media/2024/nba-wnba-media-rights-sold-together-separate-1234774937/
This is why Caitlin was only able to sign such a meager contract. $76,000 her first year, and creeping up to $100,000 her fourth year.
https://eu.usatoday.com/story/sports/wnba/2024/04/16/caitlin-clark-wnba-salary-contract-fever/73337860007/
The whole reason the WNBA plays in summer is so that it doesn't "interfere" with the NBA. This is because many of the teams share the same stadiums with their NBA counterparts, and want to avoid scheduling conflicts.
PS Adam Silver still has a major influence on the league, insisting that any WNBA television contracts are paired with the NBA.
Delete''owners' - as individuals, not the league as it is a separate corporation
ReplyDeleteThe girl isn't doing so badly after all:
ReplyDelete𝗡𝗶𝗸𝗲 𝗡𝗲𝗮𝗿𝘀 𝗘𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁-𝗙𝗶𝗴𝘂𝗿𝗲 𝗘𝗻𝗱𝗼𝗿𝘀𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗗𝗲𝗮𝗹 𝗪𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗕𝗮𝘀𝗸𝗲𝘁𝗯𝗮𝗹𝗹 𝗦𝘁𝗮𝗿 𝗖𝗮𝗶𝘁𝗹𝗶𝗻 𝗖𝗹𝗮𝗿𝗸
https://www.msn.com/en-us/sports/nba/nike-nears-eight-figure-endorsement-deal-with-basketball-star-caitlin-clark/ar-AA1nfFKb?ocid=msedgdhp&pc=U531&cvid=78e0a4b8064c4096a1cde562f93ee5a0&ei=6
Oh by the way, gender based pay gap is PROHIBITED by 𝐓𝐢𝐭𝐥𝐞 𝐕𝐈𝐈 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐂𝐢𝐯𝐢𝐥 𝐑𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐬 𝐀𝐜𝐭. Had both the NBA and WNBA been one corporation and their salaries determined in the same corporate board this would have resulted in a massive law suit. Notice how the WNBA players association has ever initiated such a lawsuit all for the reason I have previously explicated.
Owners and the NBA work hand in hand in this, trippler, with Silver controlling television and marketing rights. They maintain a very tight control over the league, which is why players go to Europe and Asia in the off season where they can make three or four times as much money. This is how Brittney Griner ended up in Russia. She played at Ekatirinburg for seven years, making over a million dollars per year, before that ugly incident. Caitlin is lucky. I'm sure the glamorous Angel Reese and Cameron Brink will sign big endorsement deals too, so they won't have to play two seasons in one year. Although, I hear Ice Cube is trying to lure Caitlin to his Big3 league with a $5 million offer. Anyway, until the WNBA gets out from under the shadow of the NBA it will be difficult for these women to get their due.
DeleteI guess you just want to get the last word in but what I said still stands.
Delete