I’m not a fan of the Women’s National Basketball League (WNBA). That being said, I can’t help. like most people, noticing how much the league has beenin the news lately, and it’s not because the league has suddenly become an overnight success. It’s mainly due to a single player that came out of the college ranks and has taken the WNBA by storm She by far the highest paid, most endorsed, women’s player in the world right now and, according to those that a regular purveyors of the sport, well deserved.
That player would be Caitlin Clark, and as mentioned, has taken the league not just by storm, but like a tidal wave. But her career in the league is not just marked by her amazing stats on the court, but by the way her opponents treat her (physically) and more important, the lack of concern by the league itself of their, well, league leaders and contenders for MVP. Yes, this story has become more about the WNBA and the way star players are allowed to be treated on the court with som, according to basketball aficionados, being blatant attempts to “take her out” of the game. Nothing seems to happen t the player(s) committing the assaut(s) on the court.
Enter Sophie Cunningham, Caitlin’s teammate. Sophie, although a decent player(averages 10 points per game) has become Caitlin’s “protector” on the court and her memeologist, gaining the moniker of “The Pointer” for her now classic way of making sure everyone sees the one’s that are the worst violators of the rules, attacking her teammate, Caitlin. This has spawned fines (small) from the WNBA, which it seems Sophie is happy paying. This has also highlighted Sophie as a player herself, adding not just endorsements, but other opportunities skyrocketing her career.
As any basketball analyst and they’ll tell you that before Caitlin Clark, the WNBA was a dying enterprise. No one was watching the games and of course, there was virtually no television revenue for the teams because no one wanted to sponsor televised games. What’s interesting about the Clark story is the fact that, instead of making the best of the situation and attracting viewers and of course the ever important advertising for television, the league has ignored what has been going on during Indiana Fever games and has thought, I can only guess, that the news coverage of the controversy would be good for the game overall. If they bet on the outcome, they need better handicappers.
The controversy is becoming more and more just that, driving viewers away from the TV sets and pf course, that affects advertising which is what the broadcasters depend on, to be able to pay the league for the rights to broadcast. It’s all beginning to tumble down like a Jenga game. And it appears to be on purpose. Of course, no one outside of league management is able to discern what that purpose is but it’s affect has been that the two players that have received the most attention, drawn viewers to the game, have been suspended by the WNBA.
It seems that when you get tired of slapping yourself around, you shoot yourself in the foot. Can anyone imagine any other league doing this to too of their most popular player because, well, they’re popular with fans? Before the suspension, as I mentioned, advertisers and sponsors were slowly backing off their support of the league. Now, from reports, they’re in full reverse in some cases, and running away as fast as they can with others. No one wants to be associated with a sporting even that treats its players in this fashion because, well, the fans don’t want to see this and of course no fans means going back to where this league was just a few years ago. Anonymity.