Typically, the WNBA commissioner gives her State of the League address around the All-Star Game, but 2020 was not set to be an All-Star year even before the coronavirus pandemic forced the league to sequester itself at the IMG wubble in Florida.
So, Cathy Engelbert gave her state of the league address from the wubble prior to Game 1 of the WNBA Finals between the Seattle Storm and Las Vegas Aces. As expected, there was much that the commish harped on.
One of the big takeaways was even with the extenuating circumstances of playing in the wubble – and the immense financial strain it put on the W’s 12 team governors/owners, the 2020 season was a success in terms of viewership. WNBA viewership, according to the commissioner was up a whopping 68% from 2019, proving that the “if you build it, they will come” approach should work for the W.
In addition there was a 30% increase in social media interactions. The WNBA is smart to tap, tap, tap in to how influential platforms such as Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and even Twitch can be to the league’s expanded reach.
The viewership increased as the W dedicated the season to social justice. The courts at the wubble had “Black Lives Matter” placed on them and all players wore Breonna Taylor’s name on the backs of their jerseys. Breonna Taylor was a Black first responder who was killed in her own home at the hands of Louisville police. For all of the talk that putting a greater spotlight on social justice was going to hurt viewership, it helped it in the WNBA’s case.
What made the viewership success even more remarkable was how the WNBA held its own in a tightly packed sporting landscape – that included the return of its big brother league, the NBA. The W went up against the NBA, NFL, NHL, MLB, MLS, NASCAR, college football, MLS and a host of other sporting events – and still posted increases.
Granted, the increase can also be partly attributed to would-be season ticket holders having to watch games via the the ABC/ESPN family of networks, NBA TV, CBS Sports Network, League Pass and its regional sports channels such as YES Network (New York Liberty), NESN (Connecticut Sun) and Spectrum SportsNet (Los Angeles Sparks). It can also be attributed to broader access to games with more national channels, including ABC/ESPN, CBS Sports Network and NBA TV airing the WNBA.
This will also be a unique WNBA Finals not only because of the setting, but because of how it will run at the same at the same time as the NBA Finals in the Disney bubble in Orlando between the Los Angeles Lakers and Miami Heat. It has already began and the Lakers are leading 1-0 after a dominant Game 1 performance.
What also has to be considered a success for the league was how the WNBA got through the wubble with zero positive coronavirus tests. There were some players who tested positive upon entering the IMG wubble but were quickly quarantined before they could rejoin their teams. A few inconclusive Covid-19 tests briefly delayed the start of the Seattle Storm-Minnesota Lynx semifinal series – one that concluded in a 3-0 sweep by the Storm.
It is an even bigger accomplishment because of the state that the wubble was based. When the WNBA announced that the IMG Academy would be the wubble’s home base, it was roundly criticized given Florida was a coronavirus hotspot and it had one of the worst Covid-19 responses of any state. Adam Silver and the NBA received criticism as well for the Disney bubble.
What also had to catch the ear of many that were in attendance at the virtual presser was Engelbert announcing that there are plans for an All-Star Game in 2021 in addition to a 2021 season being the first year of the Commissioner’s Cup. The Cup was a hallmark element of the league’s much-ballyhooed CBA it agreed to with the players.
The news of the All-Star Game is notable because 2021 will likely be an Olympic year with what was supposed to be the Tokyo 2020 Games being moved to next year because of Mr. Covid. If this happens, it has already led to some chatter on WNBA Twitter as to where the game will occur.
Ideally, this pandemic will have subsided by the scheduled start of the next WNBA season and that there will not be any need for a second season of a wubble. There have already been rumors that the NBA intends for its next season to take place in the home arenas of the 30 teams with limited fan attendance, which is a sign the WNBA may intend to do the same – particularly with some teams (like the Storm and the Connecticut Sun) already advertising season ticket drives for the 2021 season.
Engelbert says that there already planning for several scenarios and did not rule out the possibility of a second wubble.
For all of the talk of the NBA’s problems with diversity in coaching, the WNBA’s, as it relates to head coaches, is not much better. Out of the league’s 12 coaches, only two of them are Black and both are Black men – Derek Fisher of the Los Angeles Sparks and James Wade of the Chicago Sky.
In addition, there are four women coaches within the WNBA ranks – the Atlanta Dream’s Nicki Collen, the Phoenix Mercury’s Sandy Brondello, the Indiana Fever’s Marianne Stanley and the Minnesota Lynx’s Cheryl Reeve, considered to be a gold standard for W coaches. Stanley also replaced the last Black woman to coach a WNBA team – Pokey Chatman.
Engelbert had made mention that there are plans of a “pipeline” that would be developed that would address this issue.
Another announcement that Engelbert made that should interest fans of the Atlanta Dream, New York Liberty, Dallas Wings and Indiana Fever is that she hopes the draft lottery occurs at the end of the calendar year.
Engelbert also revealed that one of the elements of the wubble she considered was virtual fans ala the NBA bubble. Two of the virtual fans at Game 1 of the NBA Finals was Robin Roberts (in a WNBA hoodie) and President Barack Obama. Engelbert said the landscape of the IMG Academy did not allow for virtual fans as what was in place for the NBA.
She said that there has been a greater financial strain to put the season and the venues together but that it got through it because of help from partners. Engelbert also said that the league would have taken an even greater financial hit if there were no season altogether.
Next season will also be notable because it will commemorate the WNBA’s 25th anniversary.
