A Heroine or Else

 

A Heroine or Else

Brittney Griner, the American heroine, returned to the WNBA when her Phoenix team visited Los Angeles. Vice President Kamala Harris was there. So was tennis legend Billie Jean King. And men’s basketball great Magic Johnson. And 10,393 others. Capacity is 19,079 for basketball so a lot were not there. You would think the American heroine would do better.

You could argue that the American public was force-fed the American heroine, but the forced feeding is more likely a larger meal. The average attendance for WNBA games in 2022 was just 5,679. To put that in perspective,  the American Hockey League games this past season averaged 5,651. The AHL. Minor-league hockey with teams in tiny towns like Bakersfield, Grand Rapids, Hershey, Utica, and Wilkes-Barre/Scranton drew almost identically to the world’s top league for women’s basketball, which has franchises in major markets and big-time arenas. They have a national TV contract, too.

Probably should revisit the basketball pay inequity, too.
(some from Madden)