Origins of the WNBA - Start of the League to the Wage Gap
In April 1996, the NBA announced that the WNBA will become a recognizable league in June of 1997.
The governing board of the NBA originally created the first eight franchises of the league, which would also be located in the same city of an NBA team. This was intentionally done so the women’s team can resemble the same team color and similar name from their male counterpart team.
Once the league was finalized the WNBA made a deal with networks ESPN, NBC, and Lifetime to broadcast live games during the summer season. This also happens to be a convenience to the NBA since the summer months is an off season for the men. By having the women’s league during the months of May through October, gives the league more exposure while also utilizing the same facilities as the men’s teams.
As broadcasting started in 2001 the WNBA had 50 million viewers watching the games on these main networks. In 2002 the league expanded their live coverage to ESPN2, while Lifetime did profile pieces on the players which expanded viewership and included 23 different languages.
Just like any other professional organization in sports, the women’s league was set up just like the NBA. The Eastern and Western conference both have six teams that currently make up the WBNA. The WNBA created 4 more teams back in 1997, but cut back the 4 in their peak year of 2000. Currently in the WNBA only 3 of the original teams from the inaugural season remain. The women’s teams represent the following cities:
As the WNBA is approaching their 23rd season in May 2019, it is important to recognize the notable players they have produce like Lisa Leslie. Leslie was one of the firsts signed players to the WNBA in 1997. Along with many first for the league, Leslie was also one of the first players to do a slam dunk. Her talent even helped the women's Olympic teams win gold in 2000 and 2004.
After Leslie retired from being a player for the WNBA, in 2011 she returned to the Sparks as an investor. She is now one of the owners of the team along with an investment group lead by Magic Johnson. With invest and now a correspondent for Fox Sports, Leslie has become one of the most recognizable players in the WNBA.
In contrast to Leslie, Liz Cambage (who is a current player of the WNBA) has made herself a notable player for reasons on and off the court. Cambage, center for the Dallas Wings, had a league record scoring 53 points in one game. With record breaking points in a game this Australian born player is also not afraid to speak her mind on the issues of the WNBA.
It has been an ongoing battle for female athletes to get paid the same amount as their male counterparts. But Cambridge and other fellow teammates have questioned and even spoke out the issue that plagues the league. For WNBA players the maximum payment they can receive is $113,000 in 2018, which is a huge pay cut compared to Lebron James or Steph Curry. With low paychecks results are women of the league go overseas to play which they can make three times more than their current WNBA salaries.
“We sign million dollar contracts in Asia and Russia and get treated like royalty,” Cambage said. “But when we are home in America, we’re back of the plane, playing back-to-backs.”
Although the WNBA has given these players the platform to play overseas, if the league paid their players more athletes will actually get an off season like the NBA players do. Also playing overseas comes great risk of getting injured. This affects their ability to play for the WNBA once they return from Europe. It is a choice that most players in the league take in order to make a living wage and continue their media exposure for their careers.
This battle to end the wage gap between the WNBA and NBA has been ongoing since female athletes first came on the scene. But with the WNBA not making a profit from their teams and lack of attendance from fans, the league is having a hard time creating a profit in order to rightfully pay their players.
