The Sad Reality Of The WNBA and Its Wage Gap

[Warspite]

I wonder if the viewership would increase in a mixed league. Still the WNBA is a welfare program of the NBA for womens basketball. Maybe the NBAPA can chip in from there salaries to pay the WNBA? Think of it as a welfare tax on rich men for poor women.

[dk1115]

So basically, if I work at a grocery shop as a cashier, I should be paid like a cashier that works at Costco.

I mean, if I play in Euroleague and I'm the best player there, I should also be getting paid 30 Million a year.

[lilfishi22]

Pretty weird that anytime there's a thread about the WNBA, all these poster crawl out of their mouseholes to "well actually" denigrate the WNBA.

Sure is weird... and consistent.

Who's denigrating the WNBA. Just commenting why the argument that WNBA players should be paid more doesn't really have merit based on what they bring in vs the NBA or *any* other industry.

[axeman23]

I wonder if the viewership would increase in a mixed league. Still the WNBA is a welfare program of the NBA for womens basketball. Maybe the NBAPA can chip in from there salaries to pay the WNBA? Think of it as a welfare tax on rich men for poor women.

"Mixed league"??? Can you imagine what would happen the first time a female tried to draw a charge on Lebron with a full head of steam up? She'd end up in the cheap seats with an expensive medical bill. Or a female getting her ankles literally broken by Kyrie? Or hitting the deck from a Steven Adams screen? Mixed league at a COMPETITIVE level is a lawsuit waiting to happen. People just think "it'll be ok", coz they see the glorified exhibition games at All Star Break...

[bondom34]

Don't know if you all are still arguing but this game's pretty good tbh

[illuminati666]

Watch on YouTube

No such thing as the wage gap. You make what you deserve

[og15]

the WNBA marketing has been mishandled pretty badly. they need to look into successful women sports and see what made those sports marketable. i don't think it has anything to do with better athleticism or jumping higher or being stronger. women's tennis players don't hit as hard as the men, they don't serve as hard, they don't play as quick. yet they are watched. so there must be some quality which makes them watchable and entertaining. it's the same in volleyball. women volleyball players are generally weaker, slower, and less hard-hitting than the men. yet they're still watched.

Here's the thing: Women's tennis and volleyball still LOOK LIKE the men's game (so long as they are playing vs. other women, of course). It definitely helps in Volleyball that the net is lowered.

Women's basketball just doesn't even look like the same game. It's almost completely below the rim and the differences in size, speed and athleticism are just the magnified in the game of basketball. It's played on much a bigger court than volleyball with a lot more ground for each player to cover and the rim is still 10 feet tall (as opposed to the lowered net in volleyball).

Often times, it's literally like watching a watered down version of boy's Junior Varsity basketball. It's just not a very entertaining product.

So you're suggesting lower rims, a shorter court, and replays at 1.25 speed

[Catchall]

It's a question of market and market value. Where would the money come from to pay salaries? There are no tv ratings, few corporate sponsorships and, I'd imagine, anemic ticket sales.

Maybe I'm off base here, but I think some high school boys teams could beat WNBA teams.

[kulaz3000]

Whenever this argument is raised, in relationship to fair pay my immediate response is, they would get paid more if the league was generating more revenue - it's as simple as that. This should have nothing to do with gender pay equality, because the WNBA and the NBA are entirely different businesses; if there were both men and women in the same league, and the men were getting paid significantly more than women, it's a fair debate to have, but this isn't the case.

I get it, it must be frustrating for the women in the WNBA to see what the men in the NBA gets, while these women have to play essentially 2 seasons to make a good living, which must take a toll on their bodies, and also their general living, but it's not like the NBA was always a high paying league. The NBA started off as replay league, where live games were rare, and over the years it progressively built into the empire it is now, and in turn the salaries have gone up accordingly.

If the WNBA have anything to complaint about, it should be at their own league. They need to promote their game better, their players better, so the general appeal to the wider audience is attained. Once that happens, the salaries will pick up accordingly, but at this stage, where is the league going to get the money to pay these women more? Are they expecting hand outs from the NBA, which will in turn likely affect the money going into owners and players pockets. Hey, if they were to agree, great for the NBA and the WNBA, but I just don't see it happening.

[PharmD]

How big is WNBA fanbase? How big of a revenue do they generate? Global? Ok, Local?

Average attendance: 6,721 per game.
Average ticket price: $16.88/ticket
Number of home games: 17

6721 x 16.88 x 17 = $1,928,658

So $1.9M

Their TV contract is worth $25M split 12 ways: 2.08M/team

So the average team has about $4M in revenue, plus whatever they get for selling popcorn and whatever.

[Clyde Frazier]

Don't watch much WNBA, but if you're starved for bball check out ESPN News or NBA TV right now. Tie game 4 min to go deciding game 5 sue bird vs taurasi.

[Clyde Frazier]

Sue bird ice water in her veins!

[Mr Puddles]

In terms of fair pay, wouldn't the G-league be a better comparison?

- Attendance is similar (a bit higher for the G-league if I'm not mistaken).
- The maximum g-league salary is 35k (last year 26k). The starting salary in WNBA is almost twice that of last year's g-league max (50k) and the max is 3 times that of the current g-league max (110k).

[Wolfy1983]

Why can't women dunk?

[reignfire]

The Seattle/Phoenix series has been pretty entertaining. Good basketball. I enjoyed watching it.

Phoenix's stupid coach has her starters playing the whole game, every game.

[bondom34]

Yeah some people missed really good basketball tonight, great games.

[6ixSideSniper]

If the WNBA was pulling in billion dollar TV contracts, selling out arenas for 82 games a season + playoffs, AND still being paid what they are paid now, than that is a huge problem, but that isn't the case.

Their first step at making more money is voting out their union leaders who bargained for a crappy revenue split. Than they gotta think of a way to sell more tickets and to get more people watching. Things like this will take steps towards a bigger paycheque for the women in the WNBA, not asking Lebron and Lillard if they agree with you on Twitter.

[Infinite Llamas]

I mean, I can watch an NBA game and a WNBA game and recognize there are vast differences. But the thing I watch basketball for the most is the love of the game, and that can come out in many different forms. I want to see players having fun and competing and putting everything on the line. and that doesn't have to mean acrobatic dunks or insane vertical leaps. That's why it's easy for me to enjoy the WNBA, a college game, NBA or even a team of kids at the YMCA (where I used to coach). You just want to see passion and appreciation for the sport. It's really quite simple for me.

[6ixSideSniper]

I mean, I can watch an NBA game and a WNBA game and recognize there are vast differences. But the thing I watch basketball for the most is the love of the game, and that can come out in many different forms. I want to see players having fun and competing and putting everything on the line. and that doesn't have to mean acrobatic dunks or insane vertical leaps. That's why it's easy for me to enjoy the WNBA, a college game, NBA or even a team of kids at the YMCA (where I used to coach). You just want to see passion and appreciation for the sport. It's really quite simple for me.

I bet you passion isn't enough for you to go out and buy tickets, attend games and buy player jerseys.

[Lalouie]

okay, this is a long-@ssed video so i stopped.
no product = no sales. it's basic economics

delving further the women will always be compared to the men when it comes to mano-a-mano sports because in a man a mano sport all the athletic attributes of the women pale in comparison to the men. women sports will survive in sports like tennis, golf, gymnastics, t&f. swimming, beach volleyball (a voyeuristic sport if ever there was one), and my favorite softball because they are NOT mano a mano. no one wants to watch womens football or basketball or boxing unless they're clad in bikini shorts or mud wrestling. the last thing a wnba champion would ever want to do is face oak hill or a big city #1 boys team because they would lose by 80 if the boys cared enough.

also. didn't diggins go to notre dame for 4yrs. didn't she graduate? cuz she sure is dumb. that usc player too but that's usc