I dont watch the WNBA. The reason is borderline sexist, I’m not going to lie. I just think the level of competition is terrible. Its no secret that David Stern is holding on to the WNBA idea stubbornly refusing to admit failure even in this economy that is seeing NBA teams fail. So need I say more about whether I’ve been watching the NCAA women’s tournament?
I’m not some men are better than women big tough guy. I know there are plenty of athletic women out there who can probably beat me in plenty of sports. But I just don’t find what they do to be anything worthy of being paid to watch. What I mean to say is*, by comparison I would pay premium price to see Lebron or Kobe or Chris Paul play or even get a chance to sit next to Spike Lee at a Knicks game, but I would never go past 5 dollars to watch a WNBA game. For me, I’m not getting the same bang for the buck.
*= I’m literally sweating as I’m writing this. I’m in awkward alley writing this by the way.
But recently there have been two forces in the women’s NCAA tournament that have been heading towards a crash course meeting that could change all of that. The women’s game has never been appealing because they’ve never had a storyline to actually grab me but then I began to realize something. There’s a lesson in everything kids, that’s the lesson of the day.
Perhaps I’m overlooking a key fact here. Even in the early stages of the NBA or NFL, I’m sure people like me were skeptical of their sports. I’m sure there were people who questioned whether the sports were worth their time. Nowadays we have 24 hour networks dedicated to singular sports and yet over 100 years ago, that wasn’t possible*. But here we are today and perhaps the WNBA and women’s professional leagues are going through that very same ordeal and just haven’t been over the hump.
*= don’t even be a smartass and say well of course 24 hour networks couldn’t happen, television wasn’t even readily accessible back then dummy. Yeah, I looked at every angle on that one folks.
Women like Danica Patrick, who dare cross over into what are generally considered the realm of men are looked at as curiosities. People whisper as they pass by, pointing saying, “look that’s her. That’s who I was talking about earlier.” As forward thinking we’d like to believe we are, we’re still a bit behind and I admit that. So I’m going to do women’s sports a favor, for what its worth, I’m writing this to say that I’m going to watch the women’s NCAA Final Four. But ONLY the semifinal game.
Why only the semis? Because when UCONN beats FSU and folks, its about as a done deal as there is in sports, ever, the Huskies will have set themselves up for their only real test. You see, the Huskies have won 74 consecutive games and it hasn’t even been close. This is their 5th consecutive regional championship game tonight when they step in against the women Seminoles.
There’s much to respect there even if you’re not a fan of women’s NCAA basketball. Geno Auriemma has built a dominant unstoppable program that is laying the framework for the argument that they are dominating their sport like NO other team ever has. I’m not going to list all the greatest dynasties because I know I will always miss one but winning 74 games consecutively in any sporting league is great.
So when UCONN advances to the Final Four they will meet Baylor. What’s the big deal about Baylor? Well she’s 6’8″ and her name is Brittney Griner. She’s the shot blocking machine that many are crediting with singlehandedly getting Baylor to this point and while many want to make the obvious point that basketball is a team sport, its the only one of the major four that allow for individuals to shine and carry their respective teams. So, in essence, its true what they say.
I could make some cliché statement about this being the immovable object versus the irresistible force but I’m not trying to sell anyone on the idea that this is going to be some epic match up. I don’t work for the NCAA or WNBA or any other association linked with women’s sports but I am doing this to tell you that perhaps sports fans who like me scoff at the notion of women’s leagues can view this potential match up as progress. I’m at least entertaining the idea in my head about watching this game just for the sake of curiosity.
Make no mistake. If this game is good, people will look back on this game as the start of the revolution that made women’s NCAA games near the mainstream that the men’s tourney is. I doubt that one game can, but there has to be a beginning for everything right?
There’s much to love in this match up. Can one person carry a team to a championship like Griner is trying to do for Baylor. It seems that every highlight involves her deep in the post on the offensive end or blocking a shot on the defensive end. Amazing how good you can look with excellent editing. But she’s on a Bill Russell kind of defensive roll that has many considering her to be the best player, and guess what, she’s only a freshman. For those who don’t know, she got into trouble earlier this year when she punched an opponent in the face during a game which prompted a suspension, but she’s now been making up for that transgression with a historic tournament stat line. Don’t get me wrong, the reason she’s playing and not suspended for the year (you’ve really gotta see the punch to understand how much of a sucker punch it was) is because she’s important to the league’s success and for any shot at ratings success for the NCAA tourney.
So if this is the watershed moment of women’s NCAA tourney games then I suppose its worth watching right? There’s actual hype to build on here for this game right? For the next week we’ll be beaten to death about Griner against UCONN, right? If we are, then the NCAA Women’s division needs to pray that this game comes down to the final shot. They need to pray that this game is as good as the hype that will come. The fate of the league depends on it. The fate of how men like myself view women’s professional leagues as pointless and taking up space will depend on it. Look I’m not saying my view is politically correct but every league has gone through this phase where early on its looked at as a curiosity until that one game comes along that makes people stand up and notice.
I realize I may be looking for a moment that came and went but let’s be real, women’s sports and the WNBA in particular are at a standstill waiting for something to happen to ignite interest. This may be that time. Its very important. Who knows if they blow this when the next opportunity to build up this kind of legitimate hype will come again? When will a phenomenal freshman on this kind of roll go against a team having won their last 74 games? When will we have a reason to watch a women’s game? Ok, so maybe I came off as sexist on this post but its a realistic question. Every sport got over this moment where doubt about the sport existed and the fate of its existence hung in the balance. I’m not saying women’s basketball will fail completely if this doesn’t go well, but I can’t remember a time when I was interested in watching a women’s basketball game. Ever. Need I say more? This is kind of a big deal.
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