This is the first time in my life that Candace Parker is not playing basketball. Insane.
As the WNBA regular season kicks off tomorrow, we are going to dust off the sports journalism hat and do a quick peek into this highly anticipated 2024 season. This piece is going to look at the explosion of women's basketball and the tale of two Americas, new fan culture, and what I am excited about this season. But first...
A tribute to my GOAT
On April 28th -the first day of WNBA training camp- 3x time WNBA Champion, 2x WNBA MVP & 7x WNBA All-Star announced her retirement via her Instagram. In an announcement that came as a shock to everyone (including her Las Vegas Aces teammates), the basketball community at large was sad that we would not see her on the court again.
Candace Parker is not just an extraordinary basketball player but was vital in cementing the greatness of Women's Basketball from high school till the WNBA. As a McDonald's All-American, she was the first girl to win the dunk contest. In her Rookie year, she won both Rookie of the Year and the MVP. When someone breaks a record, 9 out of 10 times the sentence concludes with "since Candace Parker." Candace is a revolutionary to the game. A role model and a legit GOAT. Her impact isn't limited to the court as she gracefully became one of Turner's best analysts, sharing her joys, experiences, and challenges surrounding motherhood and finding your true-life partner. Candace's knowledge, wisdom, and care were felt by those who looked up to her and those who had the opportunity to play with or against her. Now in her new journey, Adidas announced that she is now the president of Adidas women's basketball and she also hinted at interest in ownership of a WNBA team. And if we are being honest here, anything Candace touches will be successful.
Women’s Basketball & The tale of Two Americas
It would be dishonest to say that the 2023-2024 NCAA Women's Basketball Season was not a catalyst for the exponential growth that women's basketball has experienced. With household names such as Caitlin Clark, Angel Reese, and Juju Watkins and the sheer dominance of Dawn Staley's South Carolina Gamecocks, eyes were glued to the screen all season. This translates into record-breaking numbers with the NCAA Women's Championship attracting 18.7 million viewers and the WNBA Draft with 2.45 million viewers. Women's basketball is THEE product. Many content creators who solely focused on women's sports have seen their engagement grow, others are adjusting their content to now include women's basketball and there is just an overall buzz around the sport.
However, this growth has shined the light on some deeper issues - the tale of Two Americas. The idea of "Two Americas" isn't new and it is commonly used when many Black persons (or other POC) realize that white people simply just experience life and life in America differently. This phenomenon is seen from pop culture to systemic experiences. So how does this translate to Women's Basketball?
The 2023 NCAA Women's Championship put the issues that players and fans have consistently spoken about on how the sport is digested and covered to the forefront. It's simple, the sport that consists of mostly Black, Lesbian (a lot masculine presenting) women tends to be represented by the White, Straight Woman. The disparity helps to fuel the fan response towards the different players (where CC was given the 'we are all winners' treatment vs Reese being labeled as angry and aggressive). This disparity is also translated into how the women are covered and their styles of play. A prime example was the article that was written for the LA Times during the tournament "UCLA vs LSU - America's sweethearts vs its basketball villains." With underlying sexist and racist themes, the author got well deserved criticism. But that's the issue at hand. While there are a lot of media spaces that provide those nuanced pieces (No Cap Space WBB, The Next, Her Hoop Stats and writers Mark Schindler and Nekias Duncan my favorites so far), most of your casual fans and newer fans will go to the mainstream media outlets for their information. The way the players are painted does not only feed into the current issues of the two Americas (white players are sweethearts, black players are these aggressors), but also allow for these new fans to push the racist, homophobic, and transphobic narratives that harms these women.
And to that person on TikTok who looked at Kalani's & Teira's media day pictures and decided that "they look like a trans, that's a man', please never speak again. Like Angel Reese tweeted "y'all never seen black tall women that are FINE??? y'all so weird & insecure and it SHOWS!!!"
“If xyz isn’t on a roster/starting etc, the WNBA is going to lose fans and money.”
Oh boy.
Where do we even begin on this? This training camp, many new fans learnt about the difference between training camp rosters and those that made it for the season. The current Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) states that teams are only allowed 11- 12 rosters and a salary cap that increases 3% every year until 2027. The salary cap for the 2024 season is $1,463,200. This means that training camp and preseason are tryouts where rookies to season vets compete against each other for roster spots (there are some contracts that are guaranteed so those players wouldn't get cut). This has created an interesting internet phenomenon as new fans that came over with their favorite college players have taken over the social media comments of the teams that they are signed to saying "if xyz doesn't make the roster this team and the league will not get my support." Those comments irk me because not only are clogging up the comment section, but it also shows that you are only here for one player and not wanting to invest in the growth of women's basketball. It's okay, the WNBA does not need your help in continuing their bad marketing. Trust me. But here is where the disconnect comes in. We have new fans that are willing to commit, understand the issues that the league faces and are advocating for the necessary changes and new fans who argue that if these new players didn't exist no one would care about the WNBA. I'll let you decide which ones all grab and amplify the racist, homophobic, and transphobic talking points.
It is simple. The game is growing. Last season the league announced the addition of a new team in the Bay Area - who just announced Ohemaa Nyanin as the General Manager - which is slated to play in 2025 and announced last week a Toronto expansion team scheduled to start in 2026. The commissioner also announced that all teams will be using chartered flights throughout the seasons for the first time in league history. The new urgency around that is for a later post but it is an important, positive moment for the league.
The growth of the league is in your hands. Your viewership, participation and support will push for the league to do better.
What Am I Excited about?
Okay, let's talk about the hoops. Here are some things I am excited for this season.
Seattle Storm's Big 3: Skylar Diggins-Smith is back on the court, and I could not be anymore excited. Her insane ability to read the court, make crucial plays and tremendous passing skills alongside the shoot making abilities of Jewel Lloyd and the great leadership and skill of Nneka Ogwumike puts a lot of eyes on this team and what they can accomplish. The goal for them is to win and I am excited to see how they are planning to do such.
Angel & Kamilla dominating the paint: Kamilla is unfortunately out with a shoulder injury for the next 4-6 weeks which means we wouldn't see her on the court until mid June. While that hurts, the glimpse we got during the preseason of Angel and Kamilla being on the floor at the same time is something all Chicago Sky fans should be ecstatic about, With the great mind of Teressa Witherspoon as their head coach, you can already see the necessary changes that would turn the, from great college stars to WNBA elite players. Like those screens are getting better, Angel. I see you!
Aliyah Boston & Caitlin Clark: We already know about the mass hysteria that surrounds CC. From her signing ultrasounds to reporters just being weird her star status is undeniable. However, she shares the court with four other people at a given time, especially last years #1 pick Aliyah Boston. With those two contributing most of the scoring and playmaking for the Indiana Fever, I am not only interested in how they (and the coaching staff) handle the defense schemes that will come after them but how this affects the contributions and efficiency of the other players. We are about to see how good NaLyssa Smith really is (she's good.)
Las Vegas Aces 3-peat: Name me a better team in the WNBA right now? Exactly. With the Aces bringing that their core and all players gotten better over the offseason I am claiming that they will win another championship this season. A'ja Wilson will not only come back to show the league why she was Defensive Player of the Year but also have that passion fueled by the person who gave her that 4th place MVP vote.
Dallas Wings Leap: I think this is their year. Running back the core of their roster that helped them tremendously on the defensive end and hoping there is improvement amongst their scorers, I believe the Wings could make a solid statement this season.
Expansion: With the Golden State team preparing for next season and zToronto awarded a team for the 2026 season it is fun to see the expansion of the league right in front of our own eyes. I am curious to see which new city would get a team as I am seeing from a lot of fans to bring back Houston. Comets and the Detroit Shock, two franchises that were a part of the formation of the league.
Not the Olympic Break: Yes, you need to represent your country yada yada yada, but the month long pause from the WNBA is not something I am looking forward to. Plus, Paris does not have the capacity to host the Olympics anyway. It is going to be a mess.
Good hoops, Rivalries & Sisterhood: The quality of hoops will be up to standard as per usual. With this incoming draft class and rising stars trying to establish themselves as key pillars of this league, each game will be magnificent. This also means that new rivalries might appear, and the old ones will get ignited. I just hope for the New York Liberty's sake that Inescou has a great leap because they are on the internet reminding everyone that she threw up during the championship series. And lastly the sisterhood. If it is one thing the players in this league knows that when everyone turns their backs against them, it is each other that they have. It is beautiful to not only see these women play with each other but support, celebrate and be able to have fun.
As women's sports analyst and advocate Ari Chambers says, "The WNBA is so important." And it is. It is a testament to the hard work and dedication women have put in for the game that they love, an example to young girls that they can be hoopers too and that people love women's sports. You just must invest in it.