The So Called WNBA

What can be done to save this floundering fish of a league? How about you lower the rims considerably, get some trampolines on the floor (ala Spike TV’s slam ball) and throw some short skirts on those so called ladies. If the WNBA put the pride aside and implemented some of these suggestions they might just have a viable product, emphasis on might. However until that point, it’s just a second…err, third class product with nothing exciting or entertaining to offer. Don’t hate me, I’m just keeping it real! I don’t watch basketball or any other sport for that matter because of the “teamwork, hustle and passing”. I want to be entertained and I want to see athletes perform at a level that is above and beyond anything I can do. Layups, set shots and well executed bounce passes are not exciting and that is why the WNBA is walking dead and teams are folding left and right. Don’t even bring up the once in a blue moon, one handed, worthless dunks. To be blunt, watching the WNBA is like watching an average run of the mill high school boys basketball team and as we all know, few, if anyone is paying to drive out to watch even the best high school ball. Unless you’re King James, no one cares!

I’ve heard some women claim that men are just upset and or bitter and want the league to fold because players like Diana Taurasi, Candice Parker, and Lauren Jackson are so immensely skilled that they would beat even talented collegiate male ballers in a 3-on-3 match and that the fact a woman could beat a male, makes us, the average male realize how terrible we are at basketball. However, that’s the fact you are failing to grasp. I totally disagree that these ladies are as talented and or as physically fit and frankly if you took the 250th, 251st, and 252nd best high school male players in the nation, they would beat your best female WNBA players. It’s not that we realize how poor at basketball we are, it’s that we realize how poor and untalented your so called stars really are. The reason the girls get paid to do what they do, is because it is coming out of the NBA’s pocket, which subsequently comes out of my pocket. Every time I spend money on an NBA product, it is being redirected to your failing league. People get paid based on their value and abilities, and that’s why NBA stars like Lebron and Kobe make 25 million a year, and WNBA stars are lucky to pull in 50 grand, which is more than generous and doesn’t even truly reflect their value or worth. The WNBA is a welfare league eagerly accepting handouts, and without these handouts they would not even be able to cut a check to the players. The WNBA is the arena football of basketball. Freaking Bono had to fold up his team because he understood it was an unwise investment that could not draw interest or turn a profit. He didn’t turn around and blame anyone or ask for a bailout. It is what it is. It’s not a man vs. woman thing, it’s a business thing, but back to the point at hand. Even if Kobe or King James were drugged up on laxatives, hung over after a night of boozing in Tijuana, had a bad case of the West Nile and were just recovering from treacherous bouts of the Swine Flu and Scurvy, they would still dominate the best WNBA players. As I said, stop complaining about what others have, and focus on making your product more viable. Right now the WNBA’s only purpose is to be used as a punch line in jokes. Nothing more and nothing less. You are now currently the equivalent of Flavor Flav, Carrot top, Al Davis and the Jonas Brothers. Keep it up; I am certainly enjoying all the laughs at your expense.

Is it a coincidence that the NBA is reporting a financial loss this year? No. The NBA has lost their fair share of money by partnering with the WNBA. Even if the NBA has started to sever those ties in recent years, I am sure they are feeling the effects of flushing their money down the proverbial toilet. Not to mention that this money doesn’t come out of thin air, which means that you and I, are paying more for parking, tickets, merchandise and concessions. Get out of my pockets and do whatever you want, but don’t expect anything from me. If you think you’re going to have a better product by singling out men as the reason your league has failed, then you need to reevaluate your rationale, because all you’re doing is isolating yourself and killing any chance you had to actually draw a crowd. You need men; as we are the majority of the sports consumers.

In regards to the comments that there are men out there who want to see the league die, you are spot on. However, it is not because I or the average man is sexist or anti female. I can speak for the average man, when I say that I simply do not see anything worth watching and don’t want precious sports center air time or for that matter any station running this garbage and clouding up my as is expense and worthless cable package. I live by the same principle when it comes to hockey. If I see it on, I immediately change channels because I don’t want some clueless executive to think that I am actually enjoying this nonsense. I’ve seen many pro WNBA articles, using the lame, “if you don’t like the product, you don’t have to watch routine”. Your right and I for one will certainly not be watching under any circumstances. I don’t care if you air this garbage at 4 AM on a Thursday, and there is nothing on other than infomercials and reruns of Dog the bounty hunter. I will not be watching and neither will the majority of sports fans. Writing about the subject on the other hand is a completely different story, as posts and articles do not contribute to the greater welfare of the WNBA. As so many others have so eloquently stated, it is not that I hate woman, I just don’t believe a failing league or business should be continually financially backed by someone else, in this case the NBA. If you cannot generate revenue or interest on your own, then that’s a you problem. Don’t go looking for handouts if you can’t make it on your own as an organization. The same principle applies to the auto industry. If you cannot create a viable product or turn a profit, why should someone else be responsible for paying to keep you afloat? Move along and take responsibly for your failed fiasco of a league.

By: Morgan Spokny