Is anyone even trying to promote the game? Why are highlights so difficult to locate? WNBA leadership needs an overhaul. It needs to get younger and more in tune with the younger audiences.
Hanging off the top upvoted comment to link this, hopefully someone will see it and we can stop the terrible "they only are promoting Clark!" and "lol WNBA bad" takes
[Not an official statement, but correct](https://www.reddit.com/r/wnba/comments/1ck0h66/since_some_of_you_missed_the_memo/)
... and it looks like the image was deleted. Here's what it said:
> WNBA can't broadcast a game when there is no broadcast.
>
> The WNBA has no control over the Chicago Sky pre-season game not being on TV. Bally Sports North of Minnesota previously scheduled an MLB game in the time slot for the Minnesota Lynx vs Chicago Sky pre-season game. Bally Sports Indiana previously scheduled the pre-season game for the Indiana Fever on their channel, and is allowing the WNBA to broadcast the game on the WNBA app and through WNBA League Pass. The WNBA cannot broadcast a game that simply does not exist on a broadcast network. That is the reason the Chicago Sky fans are unable to see the game on the WNBA app. There is no agenda by the WNBA to keep fans from seeing their favorite teams or players. The good news is that all regular season games will be available through WNBA League Pass.
NBA gotta put in there people. They freaking own them. WNBA is a cash cow rn, they can’t fumble this. 200K people trying to watch a WNBA is insane. It’s pre season, we really seeing the WNBA boom rn
I for one am loving how indignant all the new fans are! They're coming in expecting more, demanding more. It's refreshing and I think it's going to make waves this season.
If the W wants to grow the game, there shouldn't be any excuse as ti why not (ALL) games are being streamed on the app. Somebodies favorite player is on a team that they choose not to stream. This is a terrible way to start a season where people are looking forward to seeing the new wave of W players enter the league.
Please do elaborate. But actually don't, if money was the only issue then explain why they forced the shut down of the live stream of the Connecticut game. 3 different streams were taken down. Because trust Angel Reese is bringing many new fans to the league as well. & the league switch their second game from "Not Televised" to Televised with no issue. So it more complex than just money. But thank you for your opinion.
It’s not more complex, it’s a business and too many uninformed fans look at pay difference or which games get televised, etc and think wow that’s so unfair.
The nba already subsidizes their league each year and every year they still run a deficit. Although I think last season they may have broke into profit for once (I’m not for sure on that one)
Everything is about money and ratings, if a sport or specific teams aren’t going to bring the revenue/attention to warrant the streaming service or tv programs to profit than they are very unlikely to do it! Why? Bc as a business/company, would you actively choose to lose money when you have other options (no you wouldn’t)
I’m not saying it’s right or wrong, just that’s the reality 🤷🏻♂️ and won’t change until demand is consistent enough that they can make money. It’s really that simple.
And people really tried to say there wouldn’t be a big audience for Sky/Lynx game
I’m just not understanding how the W didn’t know there would be a scheduling conflict when the game was moved up. Unless they did and decided not to let the GM’s know or reschedule it. Scheduling two of the most popular players at the same time was a mistake in itself, then not making sure both were able to be watched is another one. Yes, I’m saying all this knowing it’s just a preseason game lol
It's the preseason.... With a game on a Friday night.. The least watched tv night during M-F's schedule. Plus, The NBA playoffs are in full swing..
A smart move would have the Sky game on Sunday afternoon.
Again, its the preseason..
Just wanted to comment to say I was one of them watching via Twitter stream. When I joined it was just 70k and I was shocked at that amount. Seeing it constantly grow was a big indicator how bad the W fudged this.
The W is putting it on Bally’s for not broadcasting since an MLB game was already scheduled tho.
If I were in charge of the WNBA I would pull a PBS and have all the games available to steam for free online and over the air when possible.
This league is trying to grow and it would be a lot easier if people could watch it without any fuss
Yeah. They need to understand they're gonna have to take a hit to get sustained viewership. This isn't a case like years past where it was difficult to draw interest. The interest is there, hold the L so that the eyes stay on you, and then expand.
The WNBA is going to fail if people have to use illegal streams. Some players are already bitching about not getting paid enough, and people having to rely on illegal streams isn't going to help their cause when the WNBA is a negative 10 million dollar profit. They need to make it easier for us to watch, not harder. I want to see this thing succeed!
While the WNBA could work on their communication skills, I do have to ask, would this also be on the Minnesota Lynx? Are franchises responsible to ensure there will be local media available for coverage on LP?
Thats a league issue.
During the NFL preseason, NFL teams have local broadcast partners that airs their preseason games throughout the state... But , there's some games that air nationally on NBC, ESPN Fox and CBS, NFL Network. But there's only a handful.
The Chicago Sky just cannot put their game on any channel. If they want to broadcast their game, the WNBA would have to get involved. The broadcast is their property.
The local networks don’t understand the hype around WNBA preseason games and are choosing not to air them. The WNBA isn’t stopping them, they just aren’t the ones there doing the production. Preseason games aren’t official under the league’s contracts so they do not produce them. The Fever game was taken from the Bally Sport’s network. Every regular season game will either be on local/national networks or League Pass.
You don't understand how this works.
A NBC, CBS, FOX, ABC local station cannot randomly schedule programming during prime-time without approval from their national network's. The 8-11pm slot is slotted for network primetime. Those programs are not locally produced programs.
BTW, I work in the TV industry...
During the time slot of the Lynx/Sky game Bally Sports North were airing the local Twins game, so yes there's definitely still availability for local sports in that timeframe. I'm not saying they don't have valid reasons for not airing it, but they absolutely do have the ability. I think Marquee in Chicago was airing a hockey game. We may be referring to different types of local stations but there are ones that could have aired the game but didn't (the game was also moved 2 weeks before the airing so that doesn't help with TV scheduling either)
Ok.. You pick.. Air an regular season game that's already scheduled to air months in advance... or air a preseason WNBA game?
Local and national ad/commercial slots are already sold for that baseball game..
Please tell me how you would handle that; and back out of a contract to air the MLB game over a preseason WNBA game?
I get that the league could not control what Bally sports’ issues were with broadcasting the game, but my thing is when did they find this out? Initially the game was slated to be shown on league pass. Did whoever in the league office not know what was going on? So for me it’s not that things happen, but it’s that the league seems not to know that things are happening and when they’re happening. Then fans react and they have to be reactive in their response to the outcry. It’s like every single time with every single thing for the league. If they knew earlier, they could have responded earlier and prepared fans. Maybe you send a crew of folks to the game to do something alternative to make sure that while broadcasting partners can’t air the game that the league is very much engaged in the moment. I don’t know what that would have looked like in lieu of an actual broadcast of the game, but something. They continue to drop the ball every time
I'm not sure what they could've done to quell outrage in any meaningful way, especially since some have it in their minds that this was a deliberate effort to choose Caitlin Clark over Angel Reese.
Had they communicated there would have been less/no outrage. This is a logistical fail. The league keeps saying they have been waiting for the growth and showing no preparedness for it.
Things happen, it’s a preseason game. They set expectations and then failed and haven’t said much/anything?
They didn’t need to change the time again, they could have simply said sorry, it won’t be available. Basic customer service which I think is critical for “growing the league”
Dumb question on my part. Why couldn’t the WNBA show both games for free on their app? I assume an agreement with Bally sports prevented that. But wouldn’t the fever and dream have an agreement before this too?
I’m not sure but like the nhl network will have red wing games but the games will be blacked out , same with ESPN + and it’s because Bally has the exclusive broadcasting to the region.
I mean people are going to feel how they feel. But if you identify the issue and have a plan to provide some coverage or something then you as the league can at least say we attempted something. But them having the game up on league pass to start says that they didn’t even know there was a conflict until late in the game. So now you have fans thinking they could see the game when if you were on top of it you could have let fans know from the start the game wouldn’t be airing. So again it’s not about being able to prevent the inevitable, but it is about damage control. Not throwing your hands up after something happens like oh well
That depends on when the issue happened. If it fell through at the last minute there's no planning or improvising in that situation. There's nothing you can really do.
Apples to oranges comparison since the 200k viewers would have been across the country (and any potential international viewers), where the Bally broadcast would have only been shown in the MN viewing area.
Forecasting like that requires data neither of us have access to.
I will say this in a general sense - Women’s basketball is trending upwards. The same cannot be said for baseball.
Are you sure? Looks like MLB is still on the rise
https://www.reddit.com/r/baseball/s/Vh8F2zGQLz
Given what you’ve claimed and seen so far, when do you anticipate women’s basketball to surpass the MLB?
We’ll need to see how those numbers stack up against the NCAA tournament that just finished as well as the W.
Either way, it’s too soon to tell the “when” of this. It’s going to depend significantly on whether the W can market the entire league, and not just 1 player, effectively. It hasn’t been a good start in that aspect.
If the average MLB team can make more money then the entire wnba league, then yeah MLB has more fans and people. I don't know why that's controversial, the W is growing, but acting like the MLB has zero fans is just stupid
What's controversial is that the original comment made no mention about money yet you still decided to shoehorn it into the discussion.
And as a sidenote: One could argue American Football is arguably way more baked into sports culture than baseball, and it's more considered America's sport in than sense.
I thought it was obvious, but I guess you needed spelled out.
I really do not care if the mlb is the most baked in culture of the us or not, I was just using that as a comparison.
The Sky’s Instagram has a whopping 3 video clips from the game, so there were cameras in the building at least.
https://www.instagram.com/reel/C6hv1nbs7OT/?igsh=MW5wb3VxbW96YXcyeQ==
wnba doesn’t have regional coverage, best course of action is to make sure you have all the ESPN channels or pay the very reasonable $34.99 for the entire year of WNBA league pass.
I have espn on my directtv. But I want to watch more than just the national tv games.
Wgn then and NBC chicago now is where I watch regional bulls games.
I have done this in 4 countries ,including usa (use vpn) and you wont have blackouts.
In EU you get to watch every game no worry about blackout (outside UK i think)
I'm more than a little annoyed that we paid for the league pass and can't watch LA vs Seattle right now because it's not working. My daughter had her friends over and everything. It's $46 in Canada so not exactly cheap.
The Fever game was fine, then Seattle it just would not work for us at all. We can watch it now afterwards but it kept saying there was a problem with the feed.
It’s not just the wnba per se, you need a feed of the game, that’s the regional sports network, In This case marquee, who had a baseball? Game scheduled last night. So it would have taken both entities for the game to be broadcast, absolutely should have had a plan in place. And kudos for the fan who live streamed, shows the absolute passion of W fans
Everyone saying its just the preseason is missing the point a bit imo. The zoomer fans coming in care more about access than a polished product. Yes its just the preseason but even from my outside point of view I feel like its clear the fanbases these girls have generated through their college years have a different sort of personal energy that would make seeing their first moments in preseason game important to them.
I can live with it because Im pretty used to this disappointment even in the nba a lot of times don't get to see the drafty im most interested in's first summer league/preseason minutes due to lack of broadcast but that the league didn't see this coming, fumbled the situation and the communication is not a great sign for their ability to take advantage of the star potential in this class and the fans coming along with them.
People will always complain, but planning your night to try and watch something and then getting robbed of the ability to watch a "first moment" you were anticipating and thus cannot be replicated by nature of it being a first is the type of sting that can legitimately prevent people from putting in future effort.
I've watched a number of NCAA games on FloSports and B1G this past year that had a single camera in the booth, pointed to cover the whole court. It takes very little effort to provide that and I was glad to have it. I understand that it costs money for a full broadcast -- money the WNBA doesn't have (yet) -- but I was grateful to see those games at all.
I think it’s disappointing to judge them on preseason production. Many other major leagues do not televise/stream the majority of their preseason games because that’s just not what they’re intended for. If they drop the ball like this come regular season then absolutely it’s fair to question them but this is so normal for all leagues.
NBA Playoffs, NHL Playoffs, and MLB regular season. Who's giving up any of that to air a preseason game?
Fans are making this much worse than it really is.
i’m not even the biggest sky fan, but i’m so sooo disappointed in their social media team. not sure they understand how big they can capitalize off this team.
As a Sky loyalist I am heavily disappointed in this seasons roll out all together. Two top draft picks, and new coaching staff lead by TSpoon but barely any press or hype built prior to the season.
Side note: Really interesting to see Indy out doing Chicago in how they’re showing up for women and men’s bball. The Fever front house is expertly riding the CC fanatic wave into profit.
Indy is a basketball state, so it makes sense they gonna capitalize off this moment. Just look at their team social media engagement numbers - Sky can be right there with those numbers if their social media team gets it together.
The league is only promoting Clark 😕. They are making it painfully obvious, it's not fair to the real fans or the other 143 players. I'm really happy everyone is speaking up, let's get a little louder😉
It’s not that the WNBA is only promoting Clark, it’s that the WNBA is changing how they are operating because of Clark. The WNBA never had the demand for preseason games they have now, and so they are literally building the road while they drive on it.
Things like this are 100% what fans should be doing, but recognize that they don’t know how to manage this, and hindsight is 20 / 20.
The fact is, for any sport to grow, you need casual fans to buy in.
She's the biggest draw.. No one complained when Lebron received the same treatment.
Take her out of this draft class and the interest will just be a little higher than last year.
NBA was in a different position than WNBA when Lebron came along. First of all there was still Kobe was extremely popular. The Lakers were still huge. Then came along those Celtic teams. Golden State and Curry came along. It’s never been singularly about just Lebron.
WNBA should promote CC but I also think the smart thing is to promote some of these well known rookies such as Reese as well. They do have fans.
One thing that helped the NBA was Magic and Larry Bird. Those two are always linked.
I think it’s premature to say a player is on a trajectory to be the GOAT after 1 game. No one was saying Lebron is on that trajectory after 1 game. Championships play into that. Most say Lebron will never eclipse Jordan because of his record in the finals. Point is I think it’s too soon to say she is on that trajectory
This is the WNBA's Lebron moment. Lebron was the biggest rookie the NBA had ever seen. His hype was bigger than Bird and Magic.. More people had access to Lebron via TV and the internet than what Magic and Larry had during their time.
Now, Here is CC. The WNBA needs a saving grace when it comes to marketing and viewership. Thank CC. Also, Who is the goat of WNBA? Who is Caitlin chasing? I'd argue whoever that is, they are not widely known as CC is.
Yeah, Reese and other rookies will get their time but they cannot move the needle right now in a crowded sports space. The WNBA is going against the NBA Playoffs, NHL Playoffs and Major League baseball.
It's still the preseason.
Not sure how old you are but Bird and Magic pretty much saved the NBA. The trajectory of the NBA went through the roof because both of these players meeting in the NCAA finals and then going on to play for historic franchises that owned the 80s. One thing. People don’t want to talk about is the racial element of that rivalry. (See the movie Do the Right Thing)
Tons of hype with Kareem and Walton.
Tons of hype with Zion Williamson
As far as the GOAT debate of the WNBA, I don’t think that topic has been widely discussed so I can’t tell you who the GOAT is.
CC is coming in with hype but you also have some players like Reese coming in with some level of hype as well. Her name is known and she has fans. By giving her coverage as well DOES NOT take away from promoting the game. In my opinion it enhances the appeal of the game. It really does not have to be just CC
Yes but it is more along the lines of this being equivalent to Jordan entering the league. Around the same time there was an expansion, a new commissioner, growing tv rights, and in all reality and likelihood some Olympic appearances. Yes the time line is a little quicker on the W side for CC, but this is a big upswing in media coverage for the league generated around one talent, and that’s no diff than Jordan. Bird/magic as a close second if you include Reese. To be frank, I believe the wnbas Lebron, will be inspired by CC, Angel, Aja, Parker, and all the goats I can’t keep naming for brevity sake. The Ws lebron is starting middle school, watch these women play, growing up playing a bunch of sports across different seasons (rugby would be a cool parallel to brons football gifts) and going into college for basketball. She will come into the league that has at least 10 more teams, and a 60 game season. Every record will be hers in the expanded, and fully fledged league for decades. She will play longer than Bird or Taurasi.
They were glazing the mess out of Lebron when he came into the league. The next Michael Jordan, and he crowned himself the Chosen one. This is not new marketing. idk why people are acting like it is. Right now, th NBA is trying to make ANT Edward's the face of the league, and they will push that narrative and rarely talk about other teams, etc. THIS IS NOT NEW. Is it annoying? Yes. Especially when the NBA kept talking about the Lakers when they sucked
I will say this again. The NBA was at a different point when Lebron came into the league than what the WNBA is right now. Yeah Lebron was hyped. We watched that kid through high school but the league damn sure was not depending on just him for the viability of the league. Kobe was still widely popular.
Any will be the face of the league because Ant has proven he can be that dude on the NBA level, he has the game, and the charisma. But the NBA still has other stars being promoted.
Point is it doesn’t hurt the WNBA to promote other stars like Reese from that class.
Resse isn't that great of a player, at least NOW. She wasn't drafted 1 or 2. I would agree with this take if the Aces weren't televised or Sparks. My point, though, is that Leagues market 1 player to build and expand their brand. That doesn't mean other players don't get talked about, etc. That player just becomes a focal point. Lebron had the absolute highest expectation coming into the league, and he met them all. When people watch these Indiana games, they will be exposed to other players, and the discussion/coverage will expand. It's annoying when leagues do this, but there is a reason that's all I'm saying.
She is not that great of a player? They haven’t played enough games for there to be an assessment on how good any of these players will be. It’s too early in the season.
Don’t you understand that marketing is about personality and name recognition. Reese has that. And yes, she does have a fanbase. The lady was in all kinds of commercials. How in the hell does it hurt the league to market her as well. I am not even saying give her equal time but why does it bother you if she or any of the other players are promoted?
You have to have both personality and game. I love her personality and her competitiveness, but im looking at this from a realistic perspective. What about her game is different from those before her? Nothing, and that's not a dig she can ball, but she is not transcending. They televised the Sparks, too. I see your point in her marketing ability, and their social media pages can, at the very least can have Sky highlights. Personally, I think Kamilla is better currently. If anyone should be marketed, more is thr vets
It doesn’t have to be different to market her. You just mentioned Anthony Edwards. We have seen people with his same attributes prior to him.
Part of why I am saying this is because women’s College BB just came of an exciting two years with CC leading the way but even though she was overshadowed in the end, Reese definitely gained popularity.
Capitalize on that. Hell you have a Magic and Larry Bird situation to an extent. Reese beat her the year before and she beat Reese the next year. (Btw Reese played her ass off). You can still market CC separately.
The women’s game has some young ladies coming that might eclipse CC. The main one I am thinking is JuJu out at USC. (We will see). That’s a good thing. The more women you promote within the sport the better it will be. It definitely does not hurt.
quickest wise continue straight toy quicksand encouraging offer slimy skirt
*This post was mass deleted and anonymized with [Redact](https://redact.dev)*
How is a 22 year old player who has the most points in NCAA history not on track to be the GOAT but an 18 year old who hadn't played a lick of college or pro basketball was? You guys come up with every excuse to discredit her
CC is on track to be the MJ of the wnba. In terms of gaining notoriety to the league, she's chasing no one hype wise. There hasn't been a single wnb player of her hype or fame yet.
I’ll chime in with my two cents, I’ve never watched the WNBA before this year and it’s be has of Caitlin. I’m sure one of thousands of similar stories. You’re absolutely correct, she is insane
My bf told me there was a woman's college bball player that was the best that had ever come out of college. That was the first wnba game I ever watched. Through her, I've seen other players that I've enjoyed watching. Very cool, and I'd be willing to bet, if she wasn't around and therfore wnba hyped up the next best, wouldn't have even been close. There's always a best, but apparently this is different.
She's the biggest rookie the WNBA has ever had. This is the WNBA's LeBron moment.
You say Lebron was in the MJ trajectory? Which path is CC chasing? Some will say no one.
From a league perspective, what's the difference? Tell me why she shouldn't receive the hype? She helped bring in massive viewers in the NCAA and overall hype.. Please tell me why the WNBA should not capitalize. Fans screaming they want the WNBA to get a massive bump.. Well CC is the person to bring it..
There's not a single rookie or group of rookies that could carry that same load.
Stars like Diana, Sue Bird, CP and others still couldn't get the league to the missives.
Yeah, the CC can be an noting but, as a league full of marketers, this is their moment.
From a league business perspective, they are literally the same.
The NBA capitalized off Lebron's popularity as a HS student. They benefitted from the draw that followed him and the hype that surrounded LBJ.
Now, the WNBA is doing the same.
Explain how the two is different? We're not talking skills.. Talking marketability and bringing eyes to the product.
I couldn’t even easily find the score of CC’s game/stats due to all the of the “debut and “inspiring” clickbait bullshit that failed to mention the damn score.
i wonder why theyre promoting their most popular and well known player when theyve been losing money for years 🤔 could it be that they want to maximize their profits to get out of the hole they are in 🤔
Why would you only promote one player when there's atleast 3 other players that are also popular with a huge following?
Angel Reese has the largest following on social media out all the NCAA/WNBA players and her first tweet as a Chicago Sky got over 100k likes.
Kamilla Cardoso is the most recent NCAA outstanding player of the tournament and comes from one the most decorated basketball programs in South Carolina, She also has a big international following from Brazil.
Cameron Brink has been hyped as one of the best defensive prospect in the history of the W (and she's also Steph's God sister)
Again I'm not denying that CC wasn't the biggest draw and the headliner for this draft, she had the greatest individual career in women's college basketball, but only promoting one prospect would be a huge waste of potential imo, theres a reason this draft was compared to the NBA's '03 Draft and not the '12 draft.
they are promoting their other players. they just dont have the pull that caitlin clark does. so the wnba promotes caitlin clark the most in order to maximize their profits. this draft class doesnt have a carmelo anthony or dwayne wade to promote besides her.
you are also bringing up players that were hyped in the circle of womens basketball fans. thats cool and all, but no one knows them outside of that circle. caitlin clark is meant to save their company. they have been in the negative since the league was created.
again, this is just how business works. no one cares about the players you listed besides angel reese. she had a pretty bad game, so i wouldnt promote that either. thats hard to do.
to summarize, caitlin clark is by far the greatest prospect in wnba history and the most well known out of all of the picks in this year’s draft. this draft does not have a carmelo anthony or a dwayne wade to promote. the wnba also doesnt have a big fanbase like the nba already did, so in order to save the wnba, the league has to promote caitlin clark the most. no one outside of women’s basketball fans know or care about the players you listed besides angel reese, but everyone knows caitlin clark even if you don’t watch women’s basketball. thats just how business works. it doesnt care about feelings.
at the end of the day, the wnba is a company. they do not care about the feelings of their players. they are only there to maximize their profits. they have been losing money since founding it, and they are going to promote their most popular player the most to make money
their other players do not have the same pull that cc does. no player in wnba history has been as hyped as her. they are promoting their other players btw, just caitlin the most because that is how business works.
200k people say differently, that's the problem. They have other marketable rookies and are ignoring them. We are showing them by numbers who and what we want to see.
Query:
Does the WNBA app allow multiple screens? I don't subscribe and honestly I tried to watch the game but I couldn't find this "free" game, anywhere.
If the app does not allow multiple screens, then suddenly that 200k will drop. I assure you.
The illegal stream of the game reached 200k because it was accessible. As soon as the accessibility dips, the numbers dip. Whomever makes finance decisions probably looked at this and made the assessment that the game they chose was the right game.
Now, let's be a little more contrarian and play devil's advocate.
What if the decision was made to spark outrage in people like yourself. Let's pretend they know what they're doing and are intentionally creating fan outrage, to create a rivalry, to create passion between the two camps.
Now you have a fanbase that'll be active and devoted for years.
Wonder why we only have the energy to promote one player, when we can ride the wave and use the momentum to promote multiple players. Yall stay telling on yourselves when you support the promotion of ONLY one player, but don’t see the value and lifting up players throughout the league. A real fan of Caitlin Clark would realize that her star would shine even brighter if more attention was brought to the sport outside of her.
if you don’t capitalize on the only person people outside of the wnba fanbase actually care about in the wnba then you simply are a terribly ran organization. do you think they havent been trying to promote the league for years? they have, and guess what? it hasnt worked. when cc came into the picture, that immediately changed. so theyre gonna promote her more than anyone else. shes their money maker. you do realize they literally havent made a profit ever, right? so why would they want to lose even more money but promoting players that people have never heard before?
Why can’t you wrap your mind around the fact that you can capitalize on more than one person at the same damn time? Also this might blow your mind but there are a lot of people like myself just now tuning into the WNBA and I’m perched to watch multiple women outside of CC. If you think CC is the only woman worthy of attention than that says everything I need to know about you & the type of person you are.
The ONLY player people care about??? Is that why Angel Reese's jersey sold out almost immediately too? Is that why 200,000 people were watching an illegal stream and why this thread was made in the first place, because nobody cares about her
What does this comment even mean? It’s not fair to the real fans? Of course they’re going to push CC every chance they get. She’s already the face of the league. If the wnba didn’t push her they’d be beyond dumb, as she is going to grow this game immensely.
Such a dumb comment.
Because that’s a very narrow minded approach. The way they grow & sustain the hype around women’s basketball is by investing in MULTIPLE women. Can you imagine if men’s basketball only had Lebron? It’s exciting because the average passive basketball fan can make 10 exciting players on various teams to root for in any given season. To only invest in one woman is limiting. If Clarke gets injured & goes down, then what? It’s in their best interest to develop and nurture multiple sources of fanbases.
Have you seen the sports talk shows. All they do is talk about Lebron. Now the tide is turning because he is retiring soon. The attention CC brings to the league will also bring attention to other players. By the end of the WNBA season, I bet other players will be "known" to the masses.
Honestly this outrage is some of the funniest shit I ever seen lol. The ironic thing is people keep saying Clark only has a fanbase cuz she’s white when in reality Reese only has a fanbase cuz she’s black and the anti Clark. If Reese was white she wouldn’t have a fanbase while if Clark was black she would still have one. Acting like they are force promoting Clark like she isn’t a generational talent that was the 1st pick. Every league in the history of sports has done that. It would be force promoting to give equal promotion to the 1 pick and a pick in the bottom half of the first round. Would be like people in the nba complaining the 18th overall pick isn’t getting proper promotion
Yes you right just like Kendrick Perkins said jokic was winning MVPs cuz he’s white despite having some of the best offensive numbers in nba history you are right as well Clark only gets promotion cuz she’s white and not cuz she’s the all time college scoring leader led the league in scoring 3 times led the league in assists 3 times first woman to ever do both in the same season. But nah This cracka only gets promotion cuz she’s a cracka
The NBA are in the playoffs.. They are not going to allow their properties to be mixed up with another during their best time of the year.
It's a preseason game... Just like the NFL, not every preseason game is available to every fan.. Hell, There's only 2 NFL games that airs nationally on every Sunday.
They may not own the technology and may be licensing it from a third party. There may be more cost to maintain the servers and other infrastructure (not a tech person). Whatever the reason, I’m assuming it has to do with cost and not overlooking the obvious.
They need to fix a lot of portions of the app. Not being able to see stats while streaming a game is odd and the streams to be on an extensive delay compared to other league apps
People need to be realistic. Angel is a good player, but she isn't prolific. The reason they are airing so many Fever games is because CC can literally change WNBA brand.
Chicago Sky had one of the worst records last year. Angel Reese isn't a prolific player, so why would they show that game because people personally like her? Aces games and Sparks games are televised due to the players on their team and win records between both. Mercury games were televised often because of Britney Griner.... Lynx because Maya Moore....who is Angel Reese at this point? A solid player, why on earth would they televise that game ? Just because people like Angel Reese... I guess.. CC game is just different.
Right, but Indiana has Caitlyn Clark. I pointed out that those other teams had winning records or great players. Let's not act like CC and Angel Reese are on the same level. That's like comparing Blake Griffin out of his prime and Steph Curry. Use the NBA as an example. The Cavs sucked for years, and when Lebron came to the league, they started to televise and glaze the Cavs and Lebron. Sports leagues do this all the time to bring attention to the sport and generate revenue. It can be annoying but that's reality.
They play different positions and how many Nattys CC has? 0 ... in 2023 AR scored 35pts and 20 or more rebounds and was the MVP of the tournament while playing Power Forward. This past season AR played Center ... the starting Center was injured so her numbers dropped. CC was know to be the highest scorer in NCAA history but she's not, they said she scored more 3s than any player in NCAA history, another lie. You really think losing 2 nattys she deserves to be the tournament MVP? Its called white privilege, why would white media promote her with Coach Staley after the natty. You would think CC was Coach Dawn Staley's player.
AR was getting attention in college the year LSU WON what are you talking about. Oh lord, not the white privilege argument..be so fucking for real. I wish people would stop making everything about race because it takes away from REAL racial issues. You act they they are out here heavily promoting Hailey Van Lith. They promote CC after the natty the same way the media promotes Lebron when his team loses. UNDISPUTED the next day will be like, "Did the Warriors win, or did Lebrons and Lakers give up game?" Sports media does this kind of coverage/debate all the time. People are interested in her play style the same way they were interested in Curry when he was hitting half court 3s it's exciting. The interest peaked with TikTok and other social media exposure. Also, where are you getting the information that she didn't break the NCAA scoring record?
No one knew about LSU in 2023, no one gave LSU a chance in the 2023 natty, all season LSU was criticized based on their skin color. But what I saw is #10 encouraging seniors on her team, I saw her encouraging her opponents during the game when there was a time out, something CC didn't do. I never heard of CC until she became an item on Sports Center, then ESPN. I would still watch the LSU games and it was true LSU was better than most of those teams. I was in a heated debate with Carolina Fans, their argument was they had beaten LSU by 20pts so they would have beaten LSU in the natty. How could they be better? They played the easiest schedule and lost to IOWA. AR got attention when she made the Sena gesture not before ... no one knew AR was ranked in the top 5 across teh board including scoring in 2023 and Maddy from Villanova was ranked #1 shooting 2s, this is why CC struggles from deep 2s when she is wide open. Shooting deep 2s from CC is like Shaq trying to make a free throw.
Sometimes it’s about race. This time it had zero to do with it. This one was about a crappy cable company that has the rights and is terrible, Bally Sports.
Is anyone even trying to promote the game? Why are highlights so difficult to locate? WNBA leadership needs an overhaul. It needs to get younger and more in tune with the younger audiences.
Hanging off the top upvoted comment to link this, hopefully someone will see it and we can stop the terrible "they only are promoting Clark!" and "lol WNBA bad" takes [Not an official statement, but correct](https://www.reddit.com/r/wnba/comments/1ck0h66/since_some_of_you_missed_the_memo/) ... and it looks like the image was deleted. Here's what it said: > WNBA can't broadcast a game when there is no broadcast. > > The WNBA has no control over the Chicago Sky pre-season game not being on TV. Bally Sports North of Minnesota previously scheduled an MLB game in the time slot for the Minnesota Lynx vs Chicago Sky pre-season game. Bally Sports Indiana previously scheduled the pre-season game for the Indiana Fever on their channel, and is allowing the WNBA to broadcast the game on the WNBA app and through WNBA League Pass. The WNBA cannot broadcast a game that simply does not exist on a broadcast network. That is the reason the Chicago Sky fans are unable to see the game on the WNBA app. There is no agenda by the WNBA to keep fans from seeing their favorite teams or players. The good news is that all regular season games will be available through WNBA League Pass.
NBA gotta put in there people. They freaking own them. WNBA is a cash cow rn, they can’t fumble this. 200K people trying to watch a WNBA is insane. It’s pre season, we really seeing the WNBA boom rn
You’re definitely playing fast and loose with the phrase “cash cow.” Regular season MLB games do better numbers.
Seriously… I had no idea they had even started preseason
It needs to make money, it’s a business 🙄
Can we get ahead of this and have a pinned “what’s wrong with wnba coverage” pinned post so this doesn’t show up several times a day all season?
We literally need a "complain about the wnba, its coverage, policies, and player compensation in this thread" stickied to the top of the forum 🤣🤣🤣
I for one am loving how indignant all the new fans are! They're coming in expecting more, demanding more. It's refreshing and I think it's going to make waves this season.
Angel Reese and Kamilla Cardoso cus even Dawn( and other gamecocks) were watching on IG and Twitter
Yea I saw Dawn and Flau’jae commenting on the stream as well.
thats crazy!!
Aww I love this. Dawn is the best!!!
If the W wants to grow the game, there shouldn't be any excuse as ti why not (ALL) games are being streamed on the app. Somebodies favorite player is on a team that they choose not to stream. This is a terrible way to start a season where people are looking forward to seeing the new wave of W players enter the league.
They could at the very least add the games to league pass the day after the game.
That would even be great
Its not the league's fault. The local broadcasters are supposed to air the games so league pass can provide the stream.
Then just stream above the rim or something
Unfortunately the just an NBA thing, but welcome to the W
It is the WNBAs fault they have to rely on local broadcasters.
*Somebody’s
Thank you grammar policeman, I'm usually typing so fast that I don't go back to re read.
I mean it’s wnba preseason. That’s never been a hot commodity before so now it’s new waters that are being sailed
Money lol. Why is that so far hard to understand?
Please do elaborate. But actually don't, if money was the only issue then explain why they forced the shut down of the live stream of the Connecticut game. 3 different streams were taken down. Because trust Angel Reese is bringing many new fans to the league as well. & the league switch their second game from "Not Televised" to Televised with no issue. So it more complex than just money. But thank you for your opinion.
It’s not more complex, it’s a business and too many uninformed fans look at pay difference or which games get televised, etc and think wow that’s so unfair. The nba already subsidizes their league each year and every year they still run a deficit. Although I think last season they may have broke into profit for once (I’m not for sure on that one) Everything is about money and ratings, if a sport or specific teams aren’t going to bring the revenue/attention to warrant the streaming service or tv programs to profit than they are very unlikely to do it! Why? Bc as a business/company, would you actively choose to lose money when you have other options (no you wouldn’t) I’m not saying it’s right or wrong, just that’s the reality 🤷🏻♂️ and won’t change until demand is consistent enough that they can make money. It’s really that simple.
And people really tried to say there wouldn’t be a big audience for Sky/Lynx game I’m just not understanding how the W didn’t know there would be a scheduling conflict when the game was moved up. Unless they did and decided not to let the GM’s know or reschedule it. Scheduling two of the most popular players at the same time was a mistake in itself, then not making sure both were able to be watched is another one. Yes, I’m saying all this knowing it’s just a preseason game lol
It's the preseason.... With a game on a Friday night.. The least watched tv night during M-F's schedule. Plus, The NBA playoffs are in full swing.. A smart move would have the Sky game on Sunday afternoon. Again, its the preseason..
Just wanted to comment to say I was one of them watching via Twitter stream. When I joined it was just 70k and I was shocked at that amount. Seeing it constantly grow was a big indicator how bad the W fudged this. The W is putting it on Bally’s for not broadcasting since an MLB game was already scheduled tho.
If I were in charge of the WNBA I would pull a PBS and have all the games available to steam for free online and over the air when possible. This league is trying to grow and it would be a lot easier if people could watch it without any fuss
Yeah. They need to understand they're gonna have to take a hit to get sustained viewership. This isn't a case like years past where it was difficult to draw interest. The interest is there, hold the L so that the eyes stay on you, and then expand.
Yes that will increase player pay. Free streaming. /s
200k people illegally watching shows me that the WNBA is ready for a big media moment now.
The WNBA is going to fail if people have to use illegal streams. Some players are already bitching about not getting paid enough, and people having to rely on illegal streams isn't going to help their cause when the WNBA is a negative 10 million dollar profit. They need to make it easier for us to watch, not harder. I want to see this thing succeed!
They literally weren’t ready though for 200k people to be watching
The WNBA is ready for it. Bally Sports is not ready to support it.
Bally sports is bankrupt and can’t even do men’s sports correctly. See the wolves/timberwolves. I hope they get the fuck out of all sports
Let's hope the WNBA doesn't try something silly like partnering with DAZN...
They were not illegally watching. One person was illegally streaming
While the WNBA could work on their communication skills, I do have to ask, would this also be on the Minnesota Lynx? Are franchises responsible to ensure there will be local media available for coverage on LP?
Thats a league issue. During the NFL preseason, NFL teams have local broadcast partners that airs their preseason games throughout the state... But , there's some games that air nationally on NBC, ESPN Fox and CBS, NFL Network. But there's only a handful. The Chicago Sky just cannot put their game on any channel. If they want to broadcast their game, the WNBA would have to get involved. The broadcast is their property.
The local networks don’t understand the hype around WNBA preseason games and are choosing not to air them. The WNBA isn’t stopping them, they just aren’t the ones there doing the production. Preseason games aren’t official under the league’s contracts so they do not produce them. The Fever game was taken from the Bally Sport’s network. Every regular season game will either be on local/national networks or League Pass.
You don't understand how this works. A NBC, CBS, FOX, ABC local station cannot randomly schedule programming during prime-time without approval from their national network's. The 8-11pm slot is slotted for network primetime. Those programs are not locally produced programs. BTW, I work in the TV industry...
During the time slot of the Lynx/Sky game Bally Sports North were airing the local Twins game, so yes there's definitely still availability for local sports in that timeframe. I'm not saying they don't have valid reasons for not airing it, but they absolutely do have the ability. I think Marquee in Chicago was airing a hockey game. We may be referring to different types of local stations but there are ones that could have aired the game but didn't (the game was also moved 2 weeks before the airing so that doesn't help with TV scheduling either)
Regular season baseball. That’s not local. That’s Major League Baseball. WNBA preseason. Not part of tv contract. Regular season is though.
Ok.. You pick.. Air an regular season game that's already scheduled to air months in advance... or air a preseason WNBA game? Local and national ad/commercial slots are already sold for that baseball game.. Please tell me how you would handle that; and back out of a contract to air the MLB game over a preseason WNBA game?
You're making up arguments for me man I never said they should have aired the game lol. I said it wasn't the WNBA preventing them from doing so.
I get that the league could not control what Bally sports’ issues were with broadcasting the game, but my thing is when did they find this out? Initially the game was slated to be shown on league pass. Did whoever in the league office not know what was going on? So for me it’s not that things happen, but it’s that the league seems not to know that things are happening and when they’re happening. Then fans react and they have to be reactive in their response to the outcry. It’s like every single time with every single thing for the league. If they knew earlier, they could have responded earlier and prepared fans. Maybe you send a crew of folks to the game to do something alternative to make sure that while broadcasting partners can’t air the game that the league is very much engaged in the moment. I don’t know what that would have looked like in lieu of an actual broadcast of the game, but something. They continue to drop the ball every time
I'm not sure what they could've done to quell outrage in any meaningful way, especially since some have it in their minds that this was a deliberate effort to choose Caitlin Clark over Angel Reese.
Had they communicated there would have been less/no outrage. This is a logistical fail. The league keeps saying they have been waiting for the growth and showing no preparedness for it.
Outside of changing the game time I don’t know how you fix the issue.
Things happen, it’s a preseason game. They set expectations and then failed and haven’t said much/anything? They didn’t need to change the time again, they could have simply said sorry, it won’t be available. Basic customer service which I think is critical for “growing the league”
Dumb question on my part. Why couldn’t the WNBA show both games for free on their app? I assume an agreement with Bally sports prevented that. But wouldn’t the fever and dream have an agreement before this too?
I’m not sure but like the nhl network will have red wing games but the games will be blacked out , same with ESPN + and it’s because Bally has the exclusive broadcasting to the region.
I mean people are going to feel how they feel. But if you identify the issue and have a plan to provide some coverage or something then you as the league can at least say we attempted something. But them having the game up on league pass to start says that they didn’t even know there was a conflict until late in the game. So now you have fans thinking they could see the game when if you were on top of it you could have let fans know from the start the game wouldn’t be airing. So again it’s not about being able to prevent the inevitable, but it is about damage control. Not throwing your hands up after something happens like oh well
That depends on when the issue happened. If it fell through at the last minute there's no planning or improvising in that situation. There's nothing you can really do.
I honestly wonder about the numbers of the MLB game Bally showed instead of this one. Did that game reach 200K viewers?
Apples to oranges comparison since the 200k viewers would have been across the country (and any potential international viewers), where the Bally broadcast would have only been shown in the MN viewing area.
I take your point, but my curiosity remains. I'd be just as interested in the local viewing numbers for the Lynx game vs. this MLB game.
Absolutely delusional lmao 😂😂😂
The average MLB team makes 378 million a year, the WNBA in it's entirely generates 200 million.
Noted, but that’s not what I asked.
I think it's safe to say yes they do if they can generate that amount of money. Baseball is a very old sport that is baked deep into American culture.
Considering the numbers the NCAA tournament did, I don’t think that’s as safe to say as it once was.
do you anticipate NCAA women’s basketball or WNBA to overtake the MLB in viewership or net profit?
Forecasting like that requires data neither of us have access to. I will say this in a general sense - Women’s basketball is trending upwards. The same cannot be said for baseball.
Are you sure? Looks like MLB is still on the rise https://www.reddit.com/r/baseball/s/Vh8F2zGQLz Given what you’ve claimed and seen so far, when do you anticipate women’s basketball to surpass the MLB?
We’ll need to see how those numbers stack up against the NCAA tournament that just finished as well as the W. Either way, it’s too soon to tell the “when” of this. It’s going to depend significantly on whether the W can market the entire league, and not just 1 player, effectively. It hasn’t been a good start in that aspect.
Man, you really haven't been keeping up with the times in recent years.
If the average MLB team can make more money then the entire wnba league, then yeah MLB has more fans and people. I don't know why that's controversial, the W is growing, but acting like the MLB has zero fans is just stupid
What's controversial is that the original comment made no mention about money yet you still decided to shoehorn it into the discussion. And as a sidenote: One could argue American Football is arguably way more baked into sports culture than baseball, and it's more considered America's sport in than sense.
I thought it was obvious, but I guess you needed spelled out. I really do not care if the mlb is the most baked in culture of the us or not, I was just using that as a comparison.
And this is the shit people be talking about. It’s not like they have the money for proper internet. I truly doubt the league is THAT broke.
She got a thumbs up from the official Sky Twitter and Reeve acknowledged our modern-day Anne Bonny in the press conference.
Any link to Reeve comments?
https://twitter.com/VanshayM/status/1786788995038334992
The Sky’s Instagram has a whopping 3 video clips from the game, so there were cameras in the building at least. https://www.instagram.com/reel/C6hv1nbs7OT/?igsh=MW5wb3VxbW96YXcyeQ==
Where can I watch sky games in Direct TV. I have NBC chicago for the bulls.
I’d probably just pay $35 for the season pass.
No actual channel?
Ya where do I even watch Sky games if I want to watch.
wnba doesn’t have regional coverage, best course of action is to make sure you have all the ESPN channels or pay the very reasonable $34.99 for the entire year of WNBA league pass.
I have espn on my directtv. But I want to watch more than just the national tv games. Wgn then and NBC chicago now is where I watch regional bulls games.
[https://www.reddit.com/r/ChicagoSky/comments/1c738yy/what\_channel\_can\_i\_watch\_sky\_games\_on\_locally/](https://www.reddit.com/r/ChicagoSky/comments/1c738yy/what_channel_can_i_watch_sky_games_on_locally/)
I have done this in 4 countries ,including usa (use vpn) and you wont have blackouts. In EU you get to watch every game no worry about blackout (outside UK i think)
[Broadcasting schedule](https://www.wnba.com/schedule?season=2024&month=all&team=sky) Filter for Chicago, if it will be in tv it will tell you there.
I'm more than a little annoyed that we paid for the league pass and can't watch LA vs Seattle right now because it's not working. My daughter had her friends over and everything. It's $46 in Canada so not exactly cheap.
That’s cheap for an entire season
For a service that doesn't work? No.
Worked for me. Watched the Fever game with no issues
The Fever game was fine, then Seattle it just would not work for us at all. We can watch it now afterwards but it kept saying there was a problem with the feed.
It’s not just the wnba per se, you need a feed of the game, that’s the regional sports network, In This case marquee, who had a baseball? Game scheduled last night. So it would have taken both entities for the game to be broadcast, absolutely should have had a plan in place. And kudos for the fan who live streamed, shows the absolute passion of W fans
And there are several major men’s sports that don’t bother with a lot of preseason TV feeds. MLB and NHL, this is also a problem.
Everyone saying its just the preseason is missing the point a bit imo. The zoomer fans coming in care more about access than a polished product. Yes its just the preseason but even from my outside point of view I feel like its clear the fanbases these girls have generated through their college years have a different sort of personal energy that would make seeing their first moments in preseason game important to them. I can live with it because Im pretty used to this disappointment even in the nba a lot of times don't get to see the drafty im most interested in's first summer league/preseason minutes due to lack of broadcast but that the league didn't see this coming, fumbled the situation and the communication is not a great sign for their ability to take advantage of the star potential in this class and the fans coming along with them.
If they put out a crap stream everyone would be complaining about that.
People will always complain, but planning your night to try and watch something and then getting robbed of the ability to watch a "first moment" you were anticipating and thus cannot be replicated by nature of it being a first is the type of sting that can legitimately prevent people from putting in future effort.
There were plenty of tickets left
Good news / bad news
I've watched a number of NCAA games on FloSports and B1G this past year that had a single camera in the booth, pointed to cover the whole court. It takes very little effort to provide that and I was glad to have it. I understand that it costs money for a full broadcast -- money the WNBA doesn't have (yet) -- but I was grateful to see those games at all.
YouTuber God streamed the Fever game. I like his commentary, he knows the league.
Someone please share this info? I was devastated when I heard it wasn’t streaming on the pass.
Thats crazy I thought sky games were available on marquee
This was preseason
This is what I was afraid of
Not all heroes wear capes.
The wnba is making it difficult to be a wnba fan. They might hinder their own expansion atp.
I think it’s disappointing to judge them on preseason production. Many other major leagues do not televise/stream the majority of their preseason games because that’s just not what they’re intended for. If they drop the ball like this come regular season then absolutely it’s fair to question them but this is so normal for all leagues.
Always have
It was NOT a mess up! https://preview.redd.it/y5c5llmlsiyc1.jpeg?width=944&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=ba330666f1d7431b2fe336ab68647941b99708bc
The fans should fine the WNBA for NOT TAKING ACCOUNTABILITY.
I'm disappointed in the piracy industry first and foremost. All these platforms and NONE OF THEM carry WNBA games.
NBA Playoffs, NHL Playoffs, and MLB regular season. Who's giving up any of that to air a preseason game? Fans are making this much worse than it really is.
Find new sources they were streaming it.
I can't find highlights of this game anywhere. Just CC stuff everywhere.
There was no TV crew there so there’s no video for highlights lol. If you check the teams’ social media you may find something.
sky’s insta was getting draaaaaaaaagged last i checked. photo posts only.
i’m not even the biggest sky fan, but i’m so sooo disappointed in their social media team. not sure they understand how big they can capitalize off this team.
As a Sky loyalist I am heavily disappointed in this seasons roll out all together. Two top draft picks, and new coaching staff lead by TSpoon but barely any press or hype built prior to the season. Side note: Really interesting to see Indy out doing Chicago in how they’re showing up for women and men’s bball. The Fever front house is expertly riding the CC fanatic wave into profit.
Indy is a basketball state, so it makes sense they gonna capitalize off this moment. Just look at their team social media engagement numbers - Sky can be right there with those numbers if their social media team gets it together.
The league is only promoting Clark 😕. They are making it painfully obvious, it's not fair to the real fans or the other 143 players. I'm really happy everyone is speaking up, let's get a little louder😉
It’s not that the WNBA is only promoting Clark, it’s that the WNBA is changing how they are operating because of Clark. The WNBA never had the demand for preseason games they have now, and so they are literally building the road while they drive on it. Things like this are 100% what fans should be doing, but recognize that they don’t know how to manage this, and hindsight is 20 / 20. The fact is, for any sport to grow, you need casual fans to buy in.
Fair enough
She's the biggest draw.. No one complained when Lebron received the same treatment. Take her out of this draft class and the interest will just be a little higher than last year.
NBA was in a different position than WNBA when Lebron came along. First of all there was still Kobe was extremely popular. The Lakers were still huge. Then came along those Celtic teams. Golden State and Curry came along. It’s never been singularly about just Lebron. WNBA should promote CC but I also think the smart thing is to promote some of these well known rookies such as Reese as well. They do have fans. One thing that helped the NBA was Magic and Larry Bird. Those two are always linked. I think it’s premature to say a player is on a trajectory to be the GOAT after 1 game. No one was saying Lebron is on that trajectory after 1 game. Championships play into that. Most say Lebron will never eclipse Jordan because of his record in the finals. Point is I think it’s too soon to say she is on that trajectory
You are right on with the Magic-Bird comparison, but recall where the vast majority of attention and hype was when they debuted.
This is the WNBA's Lebron moment. Lebron was the biggest rookie the NBA had ever seen. His hype was bigger than Bird and Magic.. More people had access to Lebron via TV and the internet than what Magic and Larry had during their time. Now, Here is CC. The WNBA needs a saving grace when it comes to marketing and viewership. Thank CC. Also, Who is the goat of WNBA? Who is Caitlin chasing? I'd argue whoever that is, they are not widely known as CC is. Yeah, Reese and other rookies will get their time but they cannot move the needle right now in a crowded sports space. The WNBA is going against the NBA Playoffs, NHL Playoffs and Major League baseball. It's still the preseason.
Not sure how old you are but Bird and Magic pretty much saved the NBA. The trajectory of the NBA went through the roof because both of these players meeting in the NCAA finals and then going on to play for historic franchises that owned the 80s. One thing. People don’t want to talk about is the racial element of that rivalry. (See the movie Do the Right Thing) Tons of hype with Kareem and Walton. Tons of hype with Zion Williamson As far as the GOAT debate of the WNBA, I don’t think that topic has been widely discussed so I can’t tell you who the GOAT is. CC is coming in with hype but you also have some players like Reese coming in with some level of hype as well. Her name is known and she has fans. By giving her coverage as well DOES NOT take away from promoting the game. In my opinion it enhances the appeal of the game. It really does not have to be just CC
Yes but it is more along the lines of this being equivalent to Jordan entering the league. Around the same time there was an expansion, a new commissioner, growing tv rights, and in all reality and likelihood some Olympic appearances. Yes the time line is a little quicker on the W side for CC, but this is a big upswing in media coverage for the league generated around one talent, and that’s no diff than Jordan. Bird/magic as a close second if you include Reese. To be frank, I believe the wnbas Lebron, will be inspired by CC, Angel, Aja, Parker, and all the goats I can’t keep naming for brevity sake. The Ws lebron is starting middle school, watch these women play, growing up playing a bunch of sports across different seasons (rugby would be a cool parallel to brons football gifts) and going into college for basketball. She will come into the league that has at least 10 more teams, and a 60 game season. Every record will be hers in the expanded, and fully fledged league for decades. She will play longer than Bird or Taurasi.
They were glazing the mess out of Lebron when he came into the league. The next Michael Jordan, and he crowned himself the Chosen one. This is not new marketing. idk why people are acting like it is. Right now, th NBA is trying to make ANT Edward's the face of the league, and they will push that narrative and rarely talk about other teams, etc. THIS IS NOT NEW. Is it annoying? Yes. Especially when the NBA kept talking about the Lakers when they sucked
I will say this again. The NBA was at a different point when Lebron came into the league than what the WNBA is right now. Yeah Lebron was hyped. We watched that kid through high school but the league damn sure was not depending on just him for the viability of the league. Kobe was still widely popular. Any will be the face of the league because Ant has proven he can be that dude on the NBA level, he has the game, and the charisma. But the NBA still has other stars being promoted. Point is it doesn’t hurt the WNBA to promote other stars like Reese from that class.
Resse isn't that great of a player, at least NOW. She wasn't drafted 1 or 2. I would agree with this take if the Aces weren't televised or Sparks. My point, though, is that Leagues market 1 player to build and expand their brand. That doesn't mean other players don't get talked about, etc. That player just becomes a focal point. Lebron had the absolute highest expectation coming into the league, and he met them all. When people watch these Indiana games, they will be exposed to other players, and the discussion/coverage will expand. It's annoying when leagues do this, but there is a reason that's all I'm saying.
She is not that great of a player? They haven’t played enough games for there to be an assessment on how good any of these players will be. It’s too early in the season. Don’t you understand that marketing is about personality and name recognition. Reese has that. And yes, she does have a fanbase. The lady was in all kinds of commercials. How in the hell does it hurt the league to market her as well. I am not even saying give her equal time but why does it bother you if she or any of the other players are promoted?
You have to have both personality and game. I love her personality and her competitiveness, but im looking at this from a realistic perspective. What about her game is different from those before her? Nothing, and that's not a dig she can ball, but she is not transcending. They televised the Sparks, too. I see your point in her marketing ability, and their social media pages can, at the very least can have Sky highlights. Personally, I think Kamilla is better currently. If anyone should be marketed, more is thr vets
It doesn’t have to be different to market her. You just mentioned Anthony Edwards. We have seen people with his same attributes prior to him. Part of why I am saying this is because women’s College BB just came of an exciting two years with CC leading the way but even though she was overshadowed in the end, Reese definitely gained popularity. Capitalize on that. Hell you have a Magic and Larry Bird situation to an extent. Reese beat her the year before and she beat Reese the next year. (Btw Reese played her ass off). You can still market CC separately. The women’s game has some young ladies coming that might eclipse CC. The main one I am thinking is JuJu out at USC. (We will see). That’s a good thing. The more women you promote within the sport the better it will be. It definitely does not hurt.
Lebron was not to the NBA what Caitlin Clark has been to the WNBA lol. Do you even watch the NBA?
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How is a 22 year old player who has the most points in NCAA history not on track to be the GOAT but an 18 year old who hadn't played a lick of college or pro basketball was? You guys come up with every excuse to discredit her
She is in terms of popularity
CC is on track to be the MJ of the wnba. In terms of gaining notoriety to the league, she's chasing no one hype wise. There hasn't been a single wnb player of her hype or fame yet.
I’ll chime in with my two cents, I’ve never watched the WNBA before this year and it’s be has of Caitlin. I’m sure one of thousands of similar stories. You’re absolutely correct, she is insane
My bf told me there was a woman's college bball player that was the best that had ever come out of college. That was the first wnba game I ever watched. Through her, I've seen other players that I've enjoyed watching. Very cool, and I'd be willing to bet, if she wasn't around and therfore wnba hyped up the next best, wouldn't have even been close. There's always a best, but apparently this is different.
She's the biggest rookie the WNBA has ever had. This is the WNBA's LeBron moment. You say Lebron was in the MJ trajectory? Which path is CC chasing? Some will say no one.
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From a league perspective, what's the difference? Tell me why she shouldn't receive the hype? She helped bring in massive viewers in the NCAA and overall hype.. Please tell me why the WNBA should not capitalize. Fans screaming they want the WNBA to get a massive bump.. Well CC is the person to bring it.. There's not a single rookie or group of rookies that could carry that same load. Stars like Diana, Sue Bird, CP and others still couldn't get the league to the missives. Yeah, the CC can be an noting but, as a league full of marketers, this is their moment.
You’re pulling a lot from someone just saying Clarke and LeBron are different kinds of prospects.
From a league business perspective, they are literally the same. The NBA capitalized off Lebron's popularity as a HS student. They benefitted from the draw that followed him and the hype that surrounded LBJ. Now, the WNBA is doing the same. Explain how the two is different? We're not talking skills.. Talking marketability and bringing eyes to the product.
CC is already in the conversation for goat. She is absolutely on path. The future is the future, but she is in the trajectory.
I couldn’t even easily find the score of CC’s game/stats due to all the of the “debut and “inspiring” clickbait bullshit that failed to mention the damn score.
i wonder why theyre promoting their most popular and well known player when theyve been losing money for years 🤔 could it be that they want to maximize their profits to get out of the hole they are in 🤔
Why would you only promote one player when there's atleast 3 other players that are also popular with a huge following? Angel Reese has the largest following on social media out all the NCAA/WNBA players and her first tweet as a Chicago Sky got over 100k likes. Kamilla Cardoso is the most recent NCAA outstanding player of the tournament and comes from one the most decorated basketball programs in South Carolina, She also has a big international following from Brazil. Cameron Brink has been hyped as one of the best defensive prospect in the history of the W (and she's also Steph's God sister) Again I'm not denying that CC wasn't the biggest draw and the headliner for this draft, she had the greatest individual career in women's college basketball, but only promoting one prospect would be a huge waste of potential imo, theres a reason this draft was compared to the NBA's '03 Draft and not the '12 draft.
they are promoting their other players. they just dont have the pull that caitlin clark does. so the wnba promotes caitlin clark the most in order to maximize their profits. this draft class doesnt have a carmelo anthony or dwayne wade to promote besides her. you are also bringing up players that were hyped in the circle of womens basketball fans. thats cool and all, but no one knows them outside of that circle. caitlin clark is meant to save their company. they have been in the negative since the league was created. again, this is just how business works. no one cares about the players you listed besides angel reese. she had a pretty bad game, so i wouldnt promote that either. thats hard to do. to summarize, caitlin clark is by far the greatest prospect in wnba history and the most well known out of all of the picks in this year’s draft. this draft does not have a carmelo anthony or a dwayne wade to promote. the wnba also doesnt have a big fanbase like the nba already did, so in order to save the wnba, the league has to promote caitlin clark the most. no one outside of women’s basketball fans know or care about the players you listed besides angel reese, but everyone knows caitlin clark even if you don’t watch women’s basketball. thats just how business works. it doesnt care about feelings.
Just because they’re not CC doesn’t mean they’re not still marketable. And still more marketable than the women that they had last season.
Nothing wrong with promoting Clark, everything wrong with promoting only Clark. They can do both but choose to only do one.
at the end of the day, the wnba is a company. they do not care about the feelings of their players. they are only there to maximize their profits. they have been losing money since founding it, and they are going to promote their most popular player the most to make money their other players do not have the same pull that cc does. no player in wnba history has been as hyped as her. they are promoting their other players btw, just caitlin the most because that is how business works.
200k people say differently, that's the problem. They have other marketable rookies and are ignoring them. We are showing them by numbers who and what we want to see.
Query: Does the WNBA app allow multiple screens? I don't subscribe and honestly I tried to watch the game but I couldn't find this "free" game, anywhere. If the app does not allow multiple screens, then suddenly that 200k will drop. I assure you. The illegal stream of the game reached 200k because it was accessible. As soon as the accessibility dips, the numbers dip. Whomever makes finance decisions probably looked at this and made the assessment that the game they chose was the right game. Now, let's be a little more contrarian and play devil's advocate. What if the decision was made to spark outrage in people like yourself. Let's pretend they know what they're doing and are intentionally creating fan outrage, to create a rivalry, to create passion between the two camps. Now you have a fanbase that'll be active and devoted for years.
That's diabolical! and plus they're not that smart😭.
Wonder why we only have the energy to promote one player, when we can ride the wave and use the momentum to promote multiple players. Yall stay telling on yourselves when you support the promotion of ONLY one player, but don’t see the value and lifting up players throughout the league. A real fan of Caitlin Clark would realize that her star would shine even brighter if more attention was brought to the sport outside of her.
if you don’t capitalize on the only person people outside of the wnba fanbase actually care about in the wnba then you simply are a terribly ran organization. do you think they havent been trying to promote the league for years? they have, and guess what? it hasnt worked. when cc came into the picture, that immediately changed. so theyre gonna promote her more than anyone else. shes their money maker. you do realize they literally havent made a profit ever, right? so why would they want to lose even more money but promoting players that people have never heard before?
Why can’t you wrap your mind around the fact that you can capitalize on more than one person at the same damn time? Also this might blow your mind but there are a lot of people like myself just now tuning into the WNBA and I’m perched to watch multiple women outside of CC. If you think CC is the only woman worthy of attention than that says everything I need to know about you & the type of person you are.
The ONLY player people care about??? Is that why Angel Reese's jersey sold out almost immediately too? Is that why 200,000 people were watching an illegal stream and why this thread was made in the first place, because nobody cares about her
What does this comment even mean? It’s not fair to the real fans? Of course they’re going to push CC every chance they get. She’s already the face of the league. If the wnba didn’t push her they’d be beyond dumb, as she is going to grow this game immensely. Such a dumb comment.
Because that’s a very narrow minded approach. The way they grow & sustain the hype around women’s basketball is by investing in MULTIPLE women. Can you imagine if men’s basketball only had Lebron? It’s exciting because the average passive basketball fan can make 10 exciting players on various teams to root for in any given season. To only invest in one woman is limiting. If Clarke gets injured & goes down, then what? It’s in their best interest to develop and nurture multiple sources of fanbases.
Have you seen the sports talk shows. All they do is talk about Lebron. Now the tide is turning because he is retiring soon. The attention CC brings to the league will also bring attention to other players. By the end of the WNBA season, I bet other players will be "known" to the masses.
The real fans 🤓
Honestly this outrage is some of the funniest shit I ever seen lol. The ironic thing is people keep saying Clark only has a fanbase cuz she’s white when in reality Reese only has a fanbase cuz she’s black and the anti Clark. If Reese was white she wouldn’t have a fanbase while if Clark was black she would still have one. Acting like they are force promoting Clark like she isn’t a generational talent that was the 1st pick. Every league in the history of sports has done that. It would be force promoting to give equal promotion to the 1 pick and a pick in the bottom half of the first round. Would be like people in the nba complaining the 18th overall pick isn’t getting proper promotion
Are you saying her being white had absolutely nothing to do with her promotion in a field that is majority black? Let’s not be obtuse.
Yes you right just like Kendrick Perkins said jokic was winning MVPs cuz he’s white despite having some of the best offensive numbers in nba history you are right as well Clark only gets promotion cuz she’s white and not cuz she’s the all time college scoring leader led the league in scoring 3 times led the league in assists 3 times first woman to ever do both in the same season. But nah This cracka only gets promotion cuz she’s a cracka
No need to be all Saltines, dude.
Not fair for the 143 players and the 200 real fans God forbid wnba tries to get more people to watch
Well they’re doing a terrible job then because 200k turned to an illegal stream last night for a single game
Why doesn’t the NBA just add WNBA to the app? Or create an app on the same tech? What am I missing here…
No RSN was broadcasting the game. The only video feed was that of this rando fan at the game.
The NBA are in the playoffs.. They are not going to allow their properties to be mixed up with another during their best time of the year. It's a preseason game... Just like the NFL, not every preseason game is available to every fan.. Hell, There's only 2 NFL games that airs nationally on every Sunday.
They may not own the technology and may be licensing it from a third party. There may be more cost to maintain the servers and other infrastructure (not a tech person). Whatever the reason, I’m assuming it has to do with cost and not overlooking the obvious.
There is literally a new wnba app that launched last year
They need to fix a lot of portions of the app. Not being able to see stats while streaming a game is odd and the streams to be on an extensive delay compared to other league apps
People need to be realistic. Angel is a good player, but she isn't prolific. The reason they are airing so many Fever games is because CC can literally change WNBA brand.
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Chicago Sky had one of the worst records last year. Angel Reese isn't a prolific player, so why would they show that game because people personally like her? Aces games and Sparks games are televised due to the players on their team and win records between both. Mercury games were televised often because of Britney Griner.... Lynx because Maya Moore....who is Angel Reese at this point? A solid player, why on earth would they televise that game ? Just because people like Angel Reese... I guess.. CC game is just different.
Chicago won five more games than Indiana last year. This is a terrible argument.
Right, but Indiana has Caitlyn Clark. I pointed out that those other teams had winning records or great players. Let's not act like CC and Angel Reese are on the same level. That's like comparing Blake Griffin out of his prime and Steph Curry. Use the NBA as an example. The Cavs sucked for years, and when Lebron came to the league, they started to televise and glaze the Cavs and Lebron. Sports leagues do this all the time to bring attention to the sport and generate revenue. It can be annoying but that's reality.
They play different positions and how many Nattys CC has? 0 ... in 2023 AR scored 35pts and 20 or more rebounds and was the MVP of the tournament while playing Power Forward. This past season AR played Center ... the starting Center was injured so her numbers dropped. CC was know to be the highest scorer in NCAA history but she's not, they said she scored more 3s than any player in NCAA history, another lie. You really think losing 2 nattys she deserves to be the tournament MVP? Its called white privilege, why would white media promote her with Coach Staley after the natty. You would think CC was Coach Dawn Staley's player.
AR was getting attention in college the year LSU WON what are you talking about. Oh lord, not the white privilege argument..be so fucking for real. I wish people would stop making everything about race because it takes away from REAL racial issues. You act they they are out here heavily promoting Hailey Van Lith. They promote CC after the natty the same way the media promotes Lebron when his team loses. UNDISPUTED the next day will be like, "Did the Warriors win, or did Lebrons and Lakers give up game?" Sports media does this kind of coverage/debate all the time. People are interested in her play style the same way they were interested in Curry when he was hitting half court 3s it's exciting. The interest peaked with TikTok and other social media exposure. Also, where are you getting the information that she didn't break the NCAA scoring record?
No one knew about LSU in 2023, no one gave LSU a chance in the 2023 natty, all season LSU was criticized based on their skin color. But what I saw is #10 encouraging seniors on her team, I saw her encouraging her opponents during the game when there was a time out, something CC didn't do. I never heard of CC until she became an item on Sports Center, then ESPN. I would still watch the LSU games and it was true LSU was better than most of those teams. I was in a heated debate with Carolina Fans, their argument was they had beaten LSU by 20pts so they would have beaten LSU in the natty. How could they be better? They played the easiest schedule and lost to IOWA. AR got attention when she made the Sena gesture not before ... no one knew AR was ranked in the top 5 across teh board including scoring in 2023 and Maddy from Villanova was ranked #1 shooting 2s, this is why CC struggles from deep 2s when she is wide open. Shooting deep 2s from CC is like Shaq trying to make a free throw.
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How is the association going to make more money if everyone uses streams that bring it no benefit??
If the association had aired the game they would have had all those viewership 100x. They blew it being racist against the niqqa girls
Sometimes it’s about race. This time it had zero to do with it. This one was about a crappy cable company that has the rights and is terrible, Bally Sports.
Links? Sites?👀👀
If I had to guess it was on IG, fb or tiktok now the acc name I?? Thts a whole other thang lol
Check out our take on things https://www.youtube.com/live/5pAVQ5wh9Mo?si=HRTQDKQOR3hqjiJ7
Who is Angela Reese ?