could elena delle donne play in the nba?

[MrDollarBills]

She's not an idiot. She's the 6th woman of the year and a very good player. But yeah, terrible lack of clock awareness on that play. However, she said the same thing herself after the game, like, "If that hadn't gone in I'd have never forgiven myself, but it went in and I don't know what I did to deserve it but I'm really happy."

So yeah it was bad awareness but a great steal and a great shot, so as a fan watching the game it was plenty entertaining to me. The game as really good up until that point as well.

Every time I sit down to watch a WNBA (whenever I see them on the guide i'll watch, but they never advertise their games) game it's I've been pretty entertained. I think people who overvalue the athleticism that the sport lacks on the women's side are missing out on some good basketball tbh, but each to their own. I can appreciate an under the rim basketball game just the same lol

Yeah to me it's almost just as entertaining as the NBA, caveat being I don't really have a WNBA team so I don't get as personally wrapped up in the outcomes. I guess I'm rooting for Vegas this year because I like several of the players. But the top players and top teams in the league are really freakin good and they put on a good show.

One of my favorite players to watch is Chelsea Gray from the Sparks, man she straight up gives anyone defending her the business in isolation and her jumper is wet too. Every time i watch the Sparks play she's just embarrassing someone on the court.

Yeah A'ja Wilson on Vegas is a load to handle too, 20ppg 8rpg 2blks per as a rookie.

[MrDollarBills]

again, because he's actually a DUDE people...like at some point we just can't continue ignoring reality.

really, threads like this don't do women any favors to be honest, we should appreciate their sports in that context and not compare them to the mens sports...doesn't really do anyone any good here. Delle Donne is a great womens bball player and that's all that matters here tbh.

I respect the right of any human being to identify as what they want to be, I want to make that clear because I despise transphobia or mistreatment of trans folks.

However in sports competition, I do think that an honest conversation needs to be had, because I find that to be problematic and I don't know how it can be addressed w/o discrimination (making rules that you have to stick to sports based on your gender at birth) coming up, lawsuits etc.

and hell yes Delle Donne is nasty.

i have no problem with whoever identifying as whatever they want, but at some point reality needs to kick in, and sports is one of them.

and really stuff like this hurts biological women the most if we're being frank...

Yeah in sports competition it becomes a touchy area especially when it comes to one on one sports like wrestling, MMA and boxing, where the conversation has to be honest because someone could get seriously injured. Glad I don't have to make decisions like that.

[dhsilv2]

I generally agree with everyone in this thread, but I'm not convinced she would struggle in D3.

High school teams (at least good ones) would not start her. People are comically confused on just how big a gap there is physically between men and women.

[13th Man]

It's a very easy decision to be frank. Don't let a biological males compete as a females because they are not one.

The problem is that this community wants us to believe that there is no difference between someone identifying as the opposite sex and what they were born as. First they change the language to how they should be identified, which then they can use this blur to try to change the definition as what it means to be trans.

The scary thing is that they are actually succeeding with this bogus agenda. Liberals gonna tard.

[mixerball]

here we go again... do people just look at the stats without watching the game nowdays

Eh, she could probably manage to contribute offensively in some specific situations, but those situations would probably be pretty limited. I certianly would consider her offensive skills to be NBA level, if that makes sense. However obviously athletically, and defensively she would just have no chance. Which is kinda the case with a lot of players out there. They can put the ball in the hoop, or make some nice passes, but everywhere else they're not NBA level and therefore aren't in the league.

Unlikely a Brittany Griner, she's not almost entirely reliant on her size and athleticism to play at that level, she's an extremely skilled player too, which makes it a big more plausible for her to be able to "play" in the NBA.

she couldnt even get her shot off most of the time. contribute in specific situations? only one situation... if she didnt have defender on her.

[dc]

Eh, she could probably manage to contribute offensively in some specific situations, but those situations would probably be pretty limited. I certianly would consider her offensive skills to be NBA level, if that makes sense..

That makes absolutely no sense.

She could make shots in an empty NBA gym. That's about the extent of her being NBA level.

[clyde21]

I respect the right of any human being to identify as what they want to be, I want to make that clear because I despise transphobia or mistreatment of trans folks.

However in sports competition, I do think that an honest conversation needs to be had, because I find that to be problematic and I don't know how it can be addressed w/o discrimination (making rules that you have to stick to sports based on your gender at birth) coming up, lawsuits etc.

and hell yes Delle Donne is nasty.

i have no problem with whoever identifying as whatever they want, but at some point reality needs to kick in, and sports is one of them.

and really stuff like this hurts biological women the most if we're being frank...

Yeah in sports competition it becomes a touchy area especially when it comes to one on one sports like wrestling, MMA and boxing, where the conversation has to be honest because someone could get seriously injured. Glad I don't have to make decisions like that.

ehh, not to sound too insensitive, but it's not a hard decision, they're more than welcome to identify as they please and I respect that, but that doesn't mean we have to warp reality and millions of years of evolution to accommodate it. plastic surgery and hormone adjustments don't change the fact that biological males are born with different bone density, muscle mass, different cell and skeletal structures, etc.

and again, allowing biological males to participate in women competitions only undermines the biological women themselves who have been working their entire lives at that particular sport.

this is a new study which explains it further:

"Science demonstrates that high adult levels of testosterone, as well as permanent testosterone effects on male physiology during in utero and early development, provides a performance advantage in sport and that much of this male physiology is not mitigated by the transition to a transwoman," she says.

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/07/190723092111.htm

[HEKTOR]

I think some people don't realize the difference in level between high-level male and female athletes. No disrespect to women, but it's just a reality. I remember playing a U16 tennis tournament where I was a provincial player (in Canada). My opponent didn't show up and thus I had a bye - the organizer felt bad due to me driving a way's away to play so he asked if I'd be up for a 'friendly match' with one of the Jr girls from the club who was a national player. I agreed and thought I was going to get crushed (since she played nationals and I didn't) and even joked with my friend about it before going on court.
We ended up playing 1 set and I won 6-1 in which I can honestly say - I gave the girl the 1 game (she was hot afterall)
I remember hitting 2nd serves most of the time which she struggled to return and I remember hitting shots that were good but would usually come back against other boys - they didn't against her. On the other hand, she even said herself after that she couldn't believe I was able to get back some of her shots (as the other girls normally don't) but I never really felt under much pressure. It was definitely an eye-opener. Now, you go to an even higher level and all those gaps just get bigger, not smaller.

[-Sammy-]

The short answer is: no, she couldn't.

The long answer is: nnoo, sshhee ccoouullddnn'tt.

[dc]

I think some people don't realize the difference in level between high-level male and female athletes. No disrespect to women, but it's just a reality. I remember playing a U16 tennis tournament where I was a provincial player (in Canada). My opponent didn't show up and thus I had a bye - the organizer felt bad due to me driving a way's away to play so he asked if I'd be up for a 'friendly match' with one of the Jr girls from the club who was a national player. I agreed and thought I was going to get crushed (since she played nationals and I didn't) and even joked with my friend about it before going on court.
We ended up playing 1 set and I won 6-1 in which I can honestly say - I gave the girl the 1 game (she was hot afterall)
I remember hitting 2nd serves most of the time which she struggled to return and I remember hitting shots that were good but would usually come back against other boys - they didn't against her. On the other hand, she even said herself after that she couldn't believe I was able to get back some of her shots (as the other girls normally don't) but I never really felt under much pressure. It was definitely an eye-opener. Now, you go to an even higher level and all those gaps just get bigger, not smaller.

Yep, and then go look at soccer, where the much renowned US Women's National Team can't beat an UNDER 15 year olds boys team.

https://www.cbssports.com/soccer/news/a-dallas-fc-under-15-boys-squad-beat-the-u-s-womens-national-team-in-a-scrimmage/

These are the BEST womens players in the world. And they can't beat a MEDIOCRE under 15 year old boys team (the US/MLS isn't exactly the pinnacle of young soccer talent). Same thing would carry over in basketball.

[donemilio21]

I do not think she can play in the NBA, but I think she would have a fair chance to be a rotation player in Europe.

No she wouldn't. As explained above. Maybe on 2nd Division level in some countries (which would be 3rd best league) where basketball isn't as big.

Ice hockey is even more physical sport than basketball, but an example to put things in perspective

Hayley Wickenheiser was considered the best woman hockey player in the world and he played with men in Finland, in the 3rd best league, she did ok was good enough for the league but when their team managed to get a spot in the 2nd best league she could no longer keep up with the physicality of the play.

And Finnish women's national team play against 16 year old juniors some times and always get curb stomped like 15-0

I get the example but hockey is a very physical game. We will probably never find out, but I think she can get by in a slower pace game with zone defense by just having skill and basketball IQ.

[dc]

No she wouldn't. As explained above. Maybe on 2nd Division level in some countries (which would be 3rd best league) where basketball isn't as big.

Ice hockey is even more physical sport than basketball, but an example to put things in perspective

Hayley Wickenheiser was considered the best woman hockey player in the world and he played with men in Finland, in the 3rd best league, she did ok was good enough for the league but when their team managed to get a spot in the 2nd best league she could no longer keep up with the physicality of the play.

And Finnish women's national team play against 16 year old juniors some times and always get curb stomped like 15-0

I get the example but hockey is a very physical game. We will probably never find out, but I think she can get by in a slower pace game with zone defense by just having skill and basketball IQ.

You're completely disrespecting the thousands of D1 and D2 NCAA players (and G-League/Euro/Chinese League/Philippines league players) who couldn't even come close to coming close to sniffing the NBA but are still better than her.

[thebigbird]

Grayson Allen won the McDonald’s All-American dunk contest. He’s pretty athletic, he hasn’t been able to stick in the league due to attitude problems.

Even the worst NBA player is light years ahead of any woman physically. There’s a big difference between a 6’5” man and a 6’5” woman (even at the same weight) in terms of strength, athleticism, explosiveness, muscle density, etc...

Sorry but it’s not happening as anything other than a PC gimmick. The NFL was also trying to promote a female football player at the college level a couple months ago. They even gave her a commercial.

delle donne can dunk. i've seen her do it in practice

women have 60% of the muscle men do on average but it doesn't mean every man has more than every woman. there can be various women with varying degrees of muscle strength. so some would be at less of a physical deficit. weight is just an initial estimate of strength. but if there's a physical deficit it can be overcome if someone is good enough as doc rivers said. muggsy bogues had a big physical deficit being 5'3" 135 lb yet he played in the nba

This is what she looks like dunking. She has the 2k rim grazer package and is slow as molasses. There's literally zero way she could play in the NBA.

[JonFromVA]

i think she'd have the best chance of any woman basketball player in history

Fans constantly underestimate "level of competition" ... we just won't even be able to start to draw any conclusions until a woman steps up and actually manages to hold her own against men at high-school, then college, then FIBA/G-League.

Gotta crawl before you can walk ...

[SkyHookFTW]

She couldn't make a Division 1 college team. The FG% and 3pt% don't mean anything. Nothing about those numbers translate at all to this level of competition. David Moretti is 6'3 and just shot 46% from 3 and 92% from the line for Texas Tech, he ain't going to be playing in the NBA.

If Grayson Allen stepped foot on a WNBA court, he would be the GOAT with the biggest gap to 2nd place compared to any other sport.

University of Delaware is a Division I team. She played for that team, averaging over 26 ppg as a freshman. She was good enough to be recruited by Connecticut and get the scholarship—she left for personal reasons. And before anyone says Delaware doesn’t put out good athletes, Rich Gannon and Joe Flacco have done quite well for themselves in the NFL, 2 of the 29 from that school to get to the NFL.

Still has no chance in the NBA though.

[Johnny Firpo]

She couldn't play in the NBA, but her free throw percentage is actually an amazing achievement, and actually breaks the notion that 90% is the upper limit. Now maybe it's exactly because she is playing in the women's game, and that is why it's possible, but I don't know. Makes me think that some day, somehow, an NBA player could shoot them around 93-94% on his volumes. Kudos to her, she is an amazing player.

[LKN]

She couldn't make a Division 1 college team. The FG% and 3pt% don't mean anything. Nothing about those numbers translate at all to this level of competition. David Moretti is 6'3 and just shot 46% from 3 and 92% from the line for Texas Tech, he ain't going to be playing in the NBA.

If Grayson Allen stepped foot on a WNBA court, he would be the GOAT with the biggest gap to 2nd place compared to any other sport.

University of Delaware is a Division I team. She played for that team, averaging over 26 ppg as a freshman. She was good enough to be recruited by Connecticut and get the scholarship—she left for personal reasons. And before anyone says Delaware doesn’t put out good athletes, Rich Gannon and Joe Flacco have done quite well for themselves in the NFL, 2 of the 29 from that school to get to the NFL.

Still has no chance in the NBA though.

LOL - dude he was talking about MEN'S Division 1.

[mixerball]

that ft % is product of smaller ball and volume of games. she has an elite shooters touch though.

but some people claiming she could play in europe... cmom now, smh. she couldnt play in any mens proffesional league in the world.

[clyde21]

She couldn't make a Division 1 college team. The FG% and 3pt% don't mean anything. Nothing about those numbers translate at all to this level of competition. David Moretti is 6'3 and just shot 46% from 3 and 92% from the line for Texas Tech, he ain't going to be playing in the NBA.

If Grayson Allen stepped foot on a WNBA court, he would be the GOAT with the biggest gap to 2nd place compared to any other sport.

University of Delaware is a Division I team. She played for that team, averaging over 26 ppg as a freshman. She was good enough to be recruited by Connecticut and get the scholarship—she left for personal reasons. And before anyone says Delaware doesn’t put out good athletes, Rich Gannon and Joe Flacco have done quite well for themselves in the NFL, 2 of the 29 from that school to get to the NFL.

Still has no chance in the NBA though.

LOL - dude he was talking about MEN'S Division 1.

yea that was odd lol

[RCM88x]

here we go again... do people just look at the stats without watching the game nowdays

Eh, she could probably manage to contribute offensively in some specific situations, but those situations would probably be pretty limited. I certianly would consider her offensive skills to be NBA level, if that makes sense. However obviously athletically, and defensively she would just have no chance. Which is kinda the case with a lot of players out there. They can put the ball in the hoop, or make some nice passes, but everywhere else they're not NBA level and therefore aren't in the league.

Unlikely a Brittany Griner, she's not almost entirely reliant on her size and athleticism to play at that level, she's an extremely skilled player too, which makes it a big more plausible for her to be able to "play" in the NBA.

she couldnt even get her shot off most of the time. contribute in specific situations? only one situation... if she didnt have defender on her.

Which is more than a good number of NBA players. And heck, she's like 6'4" or 6'5", why wouldn't she be able to get shots off? She's basically slightly below average NBA height. I think she could contribute if all she had to do was stand on the perimeter and shoot or pass. But obviously being an NBA player requires infinitely more than that.