In recent years, the WNBA has received fresh interest from fans and NBA players alike. It was partially sparked by the late Kobe Bryant following his retirement. With Bryant taking an interest in the women’s league and becoming an active part of his daughter’s budding basketball career, other players began to take notice.
During the NBA’s famous “bubble playoffs,” eighteen-time NBA All-Star LeBron James also wore the women’s league merchandise. Other players and even NBA fans followed suit and started donning the orange hoodie.
Despite all of the newfound support the league has generated in recent years, the fact of the matter is that it has yet to turn a profit.
On a recent episode of The Shop, basketball legend Lisa Leslie and NBA star Draymond Green spoke about the pay gap between female and male players.
When Leslie claimed that even a mediocre player in the NBA gets paid more than multiple WNBA stars put together, Green was quick to respond. He pointed out:
“It pisses me off. I don’t think there’s anybody in America that supports the WNBA more than NBA players. We support the WNBA probably more than we support the fu***n’ NBA.”
Leslie was quick to agree with Green, acknowledging how support from the NBA doesn’t go unnoticed. In her own words, the biggest ally the league has is NBA players.
Check out Green and Leslie’s back and forth below:
Draymond Green And The WNBA
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<p>This isn’t the first time Draymo Last year, the four-time NBA Champion received criticism for a series of tweets. He revealed that he was tired of hearing complaints regarding the pay gap between NBA and WNBA players. Green asserted that players need to put owners and executives in a position that forces them to pay higher wages rather than just complain.</p>
<p>Green explained how players need to force the hands of higher-ups who claim to be supporters of women’s empowerment but do little to back it up.</p>
<p>Fortunately, this season has been a huge one for women in the league. The most recent season was the most-watched season in nearly 15 years, with viewership up by a whopping 16%, according to the league’s website. The league also broke records for social media engagement, merchandise sales, and League Pass sales.</p>
<p>The latest season was also the first that saw more than one triple-double recorded. Throughout the course of the league’s history, there have only been nine triple-doubles. This season alone, there were seven. With things starting to look up for the young league, players could see larger contracts coming their way sooner rather than later.</p>
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