Finally got around to reading that. It was all fairly surface level, which makes sense since it was mostly a primer for the topic which will be part of the W's foreground soon enough; But Voepel touched on just about everything, which was nice.
It is incredibly fascinating thinking about the timing of everything, when it comes to the Priority Clause being something players (like Stewart) have had to start considering when re-signing really as of just this year – we've only heard crickets about it since the current CBA was established up until this past free agency – as it has coincided with Griner being detained in perhaps the country that has historically paid the star wbb players the highest out of any country/League in the world. I hesitate to say something shitty like "perfect timing," since a sane empathetic person would wish it never happened to Griner at all. But, much like covid escaping China's walls and infiltrating the rest of the world, Griner getting arrested happened; So we may as well see the silver linings in it and hope it can influence what the players do in the future, in which the League can respond to their actions accordingly.
This part of the article was the one I wish had gone into more detail the most:
How many players will prioritization impact?
That was hard to gauge before everything that has gone on in Russia in the past few months, and even harder to say now, because the overseas women's basketball market is obviously affected by Russia's war on Ukraine. WNBA players other than Griner, who was detained, all left Russia not that long after the invasion. With both the conflict and global economic sanctions against Russia, how much professional women's basketball will be played there in the coming year remains to be seen. If the Russian basketball market dries up, even for a brief period, that has a domino effect on other countries.
My question is, is there more to this domino effect other than that Russia-regular superstars would simply spread out into other Leagues if they couldn't/refused to play in Russia again and it would create shifts in talent pools? Or is there much more of an economic component to it all that is being underserved here in this mention? Speak up if you have any thoughts, as it's a bit unclear to me.
Sue Bird's soundbites in this I found a bit interesting as well.
"I don't know that a Paige Bueckers -- and all the kids coming up behind her -- will ever need to go overseas, Bird said. "Why do we go? Mostly we go because there's a ton of money. Some people go to work on their games. But some people also go -- and Diana (Taurasi) will tell you this -- she went because of the money and because she's a basketball player. And that's what basketball players do: They want to play.
"But now we have Athletes Unlimited, 3x3 is getting bigger, so there are more ways to play at home. If I'm 25 and I can make anywhere close to the same money playing at home, I stay home. But everyone is different."
It has been said that Bueckers 'is estimated to' earn $63k per social media post, for whatever any of that's worth. It's clear though that she is currently making big bucks, and she's apparently not the only wcbb player. To no one's surprise, some of the most followed girls/women's basketball players haven't even turned pro yet, which may come into play down the line with the growth/expansion of NIL. You also have current WNBA stars/well-known players like A'ja Wilson, Sabrina Ionescu, Skylar Diggins-Smith, and Elena Delle Donne who already haven't been playing overseas for most of their pro careers (well, maybe Sabrina will someday, especially considering her Romanian ties & heritage). Could the trend actually be headed in that direction for star players? Ultimately it only really matters with that upper echelon category, since role players really are a dime a dozen; The more who do the shorter overseas Leagues (like Australia) or only do AU hoops in the offseason – or actually don't play in the offseason entirely (a novel concept) – will be able to 'prioritize' the W more and stand out amongst those who will probably always be running into prior foreign scheduling conflicts by making their living in Europe.
The end of the WNBA season conflicts with college and pro football and playoff baseball, and it's around the time the NBA and NHL seasons launch. The availability of television windows and venues in the summer were primary reasons the WNBA was developed to be held when it is.
The league has faced the "why don't you expand the schedule" and "why don't you play in traditional basketball season" questions countless times over the past 25 years, but the obstacles to both remain the same.
The end of the W season being anytime in fall will make it always conflict with football. At least if it ended in mid-November, baseball season will have been over with by then, and the college wbb season will have only just started. That's always been my preference, instead of playing a 'traditional' basketball season where you're competing for media attention with the NBA, both men's and women's college basketball, and the NFL – well, and the NHL, for good measure. Leagues in other countries can get away with doing it – not this one. I wouldn't want wcbb and the W's seasons to overlap anyway. April-November is the League's best bet at playing a legitimately expanded schedule (instead of this half-assed 34-to-36-games bullshit that doesn't actually accomplish a damn thing).
A lot of us follow sports to avoid following the news, but the invasion of Ukraine could have a huge impact on women's professional basketball and the WNBA.
If the Russian leagues remain the same after the war is over, then there's basis for reasonable speculation about the impact of prioritization.
But what if Putin/the oligarchs/whoever no longer support the league with huge salaries, and quit importing elite players (especially Americans)? What's the trickle-down effect on salaries elsewhere?
Off the top of my head, it would seem to me salaries would go down because suddenly you would have a greater supply of good players and less demand. Maybe that doesn't impact Stewart that much, but as you go down the food chain, now maybe a player earning $200,000 is offered $100,000. And there's also a possibility of a huge paradigm shift in professional women's basketball where salaries reflect revenue overseas just as they do in the United States. In that case, the WNBA holds the high cards and prioritization isn't an issue.
In short, it's going to be a very interesting year for the women who make their living playing basketball, and their future finances are liable to be determined by events completely out of their control (which likely include tanks).
I would think that long term if there's less overseas options for players, that Athletes Unlimited would expand. AU won't add teams for 2023, but it might benefit them to get to six teams and potentially a two month schedule. Maybe play in a different city each week? Vegas? Dallas? Some non-WNBA cities like Kansas City, Nashville, Philly? Not having Russia, Ukraine, China and Japan as options eliminates top paying leagues for American players to go to. Probably leaves the French and Spanish leagues as the best paying now.
Speaking of AU, it’ll be interesting to see which of those who played in its inaugural season a few months ago will crack a roster.
Imagine if the League sent out a memo encouraging Head Coaches/GMs to – or that they somehow all convalesced and agreed to – “prioritize” (there’s that word again) AU players making the final roster, as a subtle but clear way of saying to the players, “Hey, y’know, if you stay home and play at a high level in this pro-basketball League that doesn’t at all disrupt the WNBA season schedule, you’re more likely to make a roster and/or get paid well than if you were to play overseas.” That would make things super interesting given it could easily be seen as controversial.
Korea is another high paying market that has recently been closed to foreign players due to Covid. Some of of these jobs may come back, but teams may be finding they can get by without WNBA players, and there may not be a push to go back to the previous regime. Foreign markets are going to pay less and competition for overseas jobs will be stiffer. A Stewart might only get $1 m per year vs. $1.5, while lessor players may see there pay cut in much more, or not even find a job. So, by chance the WNBA is much better situated to deal with this issue in 2023. The players that are in high demand might also be able to get their contracts written to avoid conflicts, or some foreign leagues may alter their schedules to become more attractive to WNBA players. It probably will take a while for things settle into place.
That said - next season could be a mess for a lot of teams and the league if "too many" (whatever that number is) star players are not playing next summer due to prioritization. It would be really interesting to know where individual players stood on this issue. The ones who get paid a lot most likely voted against it, while the ones don't even go overseas for one reason or another, were happy to the pay rise that was part of the deal. Some may have voted for it figuring they would get a raise and at worst get suspended if the took a better paying deal with an overseas team.
Speaking of AU, it’ll be interesting to see which of those who played in its inaugural season a few months ago will crack a roster.
Imagine if the League sent out a memo encouraging Head Coaches/GMs to – or that they somehow all convalesced and agreed to – “prioritize” (there’s that word again) AU players making the final roster, as a subtle but clear way of saying to the players, “Hey, y’know, if you stay home and play at a high level in this pro-basketball League that doesn’t at all disrupt the WNBA season schedule, you’re more likely to make a roster and/or get paid well than if you were to play overseas.” That would make things super interesting given it could easily be seen as controversial.
I don't think AU is the answer because players were only getting far less than what WNBA players could make overseas. However, it could be attractive to fringe players who have limited overseas prospects anyway, or just don't won't go.
In the end, I don't know if I really care what players decide to do -stay at home or skip the WNBA. I'm starting to think I follow the WNBA because it is like soap opera I've gotten hooked on more than as a competitive sport where outcomes matter a lot to me. What individual players end up doing might make the soap opera more interesting and it could shake up the outcomes a lot. It may be kind of men's college BB after the one and done rule went into effect. Suddenly teams like Butler were in the Final Four because the star players didn't stick around for long. Teams with experienced players (who weren't good enough to jump to the NBA) were suddenly much more competitive. If that were to happen it might just make it official that the WNBA is really a farm system for overseas clubs and national teams.....
And then to add onto everything, there's the game-changing NIL deals at the college level, which – while they don't affect the vast majority of people in the entire college sports landscape – affect the very star players who are good enough to turn pro whenever they (feel that they) are done at the college level. Rookies won't be comin' in begging for table scraps and desperate to obtain some cash anymore. That's where the W's Prioritization Clause will almost work hand in hand with NIL deals to keep the stars home. The timelines of both are pretty well-aligned all things considered, though it would've been nice if Prioritization got activated with the Bueckers Draft class coming in two or three years from now. I mean, Bueckers could enter next year as we all know, but why would she? We've all acknowledged how the brands in women's college basketball (the UConn's and the South Carolina's) are bigger and more well-known than any WNBA team's brand. If she likes money, she'll stay at UConn/in college for as long as possible, being more likely to consider sticking around until 2025 rather than turn pro next year.
With everything going on, it does feel like we're at some sort of inflection point with the WNBA. Maybe that's where the soap opera feel comes in. Heavy expansion talk, becoming locally/nationally politically active, becoming internationally politically active (against everyone's will – talking about Griner now), NILs that affect its eventual stars, and just talk of players' lives more in a way that wasn't seen or cared about in previous years.
And yet – still poor attendance. Since it's been a few years since pre-covid times, 2022 will be the year to properly re-assess just how bad the attendance problem around the League (probably still) is – and then afterward, it'll need to get addressed.
Stormeo has hit the key point: Attendance. A situation like Atlanta is bad in many ways, but the simple fact that a WNBA team struggles to get 1,500 people to buy tickets is crushing. And at the other end, my sense is the top number of actual tickets sold (as opposed to announced attendance) is around 5,000 a night on a regular basis. Obviously more for some games and postseason ...
And as for the AU, did it actually make money? I know some of the devoted fans watched it all -- I just watched a couple of games -- but I never heard how it worked out for the people who ran it. The players got a little money and had a good time, but you could say that about semipro softball too. But maybe I'm wrong ...
how I read [this tweet] was that Mack played a long season overseas and was tired and wanted to rest before coming into camp. Reeve wanted players there at the start and with Shepard able to be here earlier, Mack was let go.
This seems like another point for the Prioritization Clause. Mack isn’t established enough to not show up and be saved a spot. Rebkells can talk about Stewie and finding that loophole but for fringe players, finding the right spot overseas so they can make it to camp is huge. Unless she does have an injury
The League should really ease into this Clause by making next season end as late as possible – Oct. 31 I believe is the last date that Game 5 of the Finals can be held in any given year, for example – and therefore making it start as late as possible as well. I would think it's a lot easier for all sides for WNBA players to show up late to overseas Leagues – since a typical season is usually just as long as the W's, if not longer – as those teams surely would rather have that happen than their players leaving right before/during the overseas leagues' playoffs to report to the players' WNBA teams.
I find the Olympic years to be easier to navigate than the World Cup ones. Having a midsummer break feels easier to pull off than having to end a season a month early (and start a little early as well) and frantically cram all the games into those other months. Since it tends to be held at the end of September, I don't suppose the WNBA would ever consider breaking for the two or so weeks that the World Cup runs – right after the regular season ends but before the playoffs begin – so that it didn't have to do that anymore.
I think the Olympic years are the worst though. The 6+ week long break kills any momentum teams have at the box office. Fans literally forget there is a WNBA team in town, and other sports start taking off. Certainly is the case for Atlanta (which may not be a good example...)
The 5-6 weeks the League breaks for now is completely ridiculous, but I don't think there's any way out of breaking for the 2-3 weeks that the Olympic run. It'd be nice if in the future, the League-wide break only lasted that exact duration. If players have to miss games in the weeks leading up to it to prepare, so be it.
"...I feel like while the league is making the right and necessary strides to pay us more and ensure that if we don't want to go overseas, we don't have to, I just feel like in my situation, the money is not comparable. I have to think about the financial status of my family and everybody else, and also the opportunities that I'm leaving if I don't go..."
Jones reportedly signed a two-year deal this offseason worth $205,000 in 2021, slightly under the WNBA supermax of $228,094. But what she makes for a season playing in the WNBA, she makes in a month playing for Ekaterinburg.
And if not Russia, China, or Korea, then somewhere else, like Turkey. Sadly there are several overseas Leagues out there that can pay competitively against the W (or significantly more so).
Last Edit: Apr 21, 2022 17:51:40 GMT -5 by Deleted
It seems like the highest paying leagues (Russia and China) are out of the picture (at least as of now.) So one question is whether some overseas league(s) might figure their best bet is to play ball with the WNBA by making their schedule "WNBA friendly." That might allow for example Turkey, or Spain to get most of the top players while France which currently seems to have the most "WNBA Unfriendly" schedule might lose out on some players who are no longer playing in Russia. Best case scenario for the WNBA is for an overseas league or two to "play ball." I guess the WNBA can't legally do anything to induce those leagues to work with them.
I think no matter what the players will be getting paid less. If Turkey or Spain paid as well as UMMC they probably would have gotten some of those top tier players already. Now they have even less incentive to bid up the pay for WNBA players.
Yeah, the French league pays well, but their schedule runs into May. And then they have their playoffs that can run into early June for the Finals. Spain & Turkey are likely the best remaining overseas leagues.
The key would be the number of bidders, it seems to me. The WNBA is good TV, as the level of play is high and everyone understands basketball, so if CBS, ESPN and NBC are all interested, good things could happen.
At worst, let's say the contract doubles -- that would mean about $4 million a team and everyone, even Atlanta, would be making money without selling a ticket.
Imo it just goes to show you that when the action is good, it really doesn’t matter what sport or general gender you’re watching. People will tune in. The day these primarily white str8 male network executives understand that is the day things may actually change around here.
Not at all surprised they did NCAA Gymnastics dirty like that to begin with. IIRC, ESPN/ABC also shafted the NWSL Championship Match by putting it at an obscenely early Saturday time slot.