During the 2008 regular season, the first-ever outdoor professional basketball game in North America was played at Arthur Ashe Stadium in New York City. In their place, the Detroit Shock won their third championship under coach Bill Laimbeer, solidifying their place in WNBA history before Laimbeer resigned early in 2009, effectively ending the Shock dynasty. The new influx of young talent into the league gave many teams something to be excited about. The top contender in the 2001 season was the Los Angeles Sparks. The remaining WNBA team, the Seattle Storm, was formerly the sister team of the SuperSonics, but was sold to a Seattle-based group before the SuperSonics relocated and became the Oklahoma City Thunder. [3], On the heels of a much-publicized gold medal run by the 1996 USA Basketball Women's National Team at the 1996 Summer Olympic Games, the WNBA began its first season on June 21, 1997 to little fanfare. Swoopes is the first women's basketball player to have a Nike shoe named after her: the "Air Swoopes". Swoopes gained national prominence when she won the gold medal with the USA Basketball Women's National Team at the 1996 Olympic Games and became a focal point of the fledgling WNBA. The creation of the WNBA was officially approved by the NBA Board of Governors on April 24, 1996,[1] and announced at a press conference with Rebecca Lobo, Lisa Leslie, and Sheryl Swoopes in attendance. [62] In 2011, three teams were profitable, and in 2013, six of the league's 12 teams reported a profit. [6] She played basketball at Brownfield High School.[7]. Three players made their top-10 debuts this season—rookies and college teammates Sabrina Ionescu and Satou Sabally, and 10-year veteran Courtney Vandersloot.[85]. The WNBA logo, "Logo Woman", paralleled the NBA logo and was selected out of 50 different designs. Many of the ABL's star players, including several Olympic gold medalists (such as Nikki McCray and Dawn Staley) and a number of standout college performers (including Kate Starbird and Jennifer Rizzotti), then joined the rosters of WNBA teams and, in so doing, enhanced the overall quality of play in the league. [60] In 2007, teams were estimated to be losing $1.5 million to $2 million a year.[61]. Currently, WNBA games are televised throughout the U.S. by ABC, ESPN, ESPN2, Twitter, NBATV, CBS, and CBS Sports Network. All listed winners are from the 2020 season. Looking to repeat in 2002, the Sparks again made a strong run toward the postseason, going 25–7 in the regular season under head coach Michael Cooper, formerly of the Los Angeles Lakers. Before the 2011 season, LiveAccess was given an overhaul, and the system became more reliable and many new features were added. [7] In the league's first season, Leslie's Los Angeles Sparks underperformed, and Swoopes sat out much of the season due to her pregnancy. [32], In 2013, Swoopes became head coach of the Loyola University Chicago women's basketball team. The title of the league's chief executive was "President" before Cathy Engelbert became the first "Commissioner". The Mercury beat the Fever in game five, this time on their home court, to capture their second WNBA championship. Three WNBA teams are in the same market as an NBA team but are not affiliated. The agreement would be the first to pay television rights fees to the league's teams. The jerseys officially debuted during the 2019 WNBA draft.[72]. The San Antonio Silver Stars experienced boosts from their young players as well; rookie Danielle Adams scored 32 points off the bench in June and fellow rookie Danielle Robinson had a 36-point game in September. Soon after, the WNBA announced that the Sting would not operate for 2007. Shortly after the All-Star break is the trading deadline. Previously only one free throw was awarded as well as possession. The WNBA had a wild 5-team trade that included the No. The scoring average leader is Cynthia Cooper, who averaged 21.0 points per game[37] in five seasons with the Houston Comets (1997–2000, 2003).[38]. [22][23] The improved health of the league was on display after the season, when the Los Angeles Sparks' ownership group folded; it took the league only a few weeks to line up Guggenheim Partners to purchase the team, and the franchise also garnered interest from the ownership of the Golden State Warriors. Laimbeer orchestrated a worst-to-first turnaround and the Shock finished the season 25–9 in first place in the Eastern Conference. The first and second rounds consist of single-elimination games, while the semifinals are best-of-five series using a 2–2–1 home-court pattern, meaning that the higher-seeded team will have home court in games 1, 2, and 5 while the other team plays at home in game 3 and 4. Facing the reigning champion Detroit Shock, the Mercury imposed their high-scoring offense with hopes of capturing their first title in franchise history. By 2013 (the sixth year under this agreement), the cap for an entire team was $900,000. The first two playoff rounds follow a tournament format with each team playing a rival in a single-elimination game, with the winners advancing to the next round and losers being eliminated from the playoffs. As of 2013 the defensive three-second rule and anti-flopping guidelines were introduced. Since 2017, Tissot is the official timekeeper for the league, as it uses a unified game clock/shot clock system. [20] Number retired by the franchise when it was playing as the, [Phoenix Mercury retires Penny Taylor's jersey as Australian greats pay tribute] by Roy Ward on, St. Elizabeths East Entertainment and Sports Arena, List of Women's National Basketball Association players, List of Women's National Basketball Association head coaches, Major women's sport leagues in North America, Professional sports leagues in the United States, "Lisa Leslie, Sheryl Swoopes, Rebecca Lobo Reunited at WNBA Draft", "Voepel: Stern changed women's basketball", "Penny Toler recalls landmark WNBA basket – ESPN Video", "Twenty years later, a look back at WNBA's first game", "Detroit, Washington join WNBA lineup | chronicle.augusta.com", "WNBA expands to Orlando, Minnesota | chronicle.augusta.com", "A history of the WNBA collective bargaining agreement", "WNBA EXPANDS BY FOUR ... ARE MORE CITIES ON THE HORIZON? Initially recruited by the University of Texas, Swoopes left the school shortly after her arrival without playing a game and enrolled at South Plains College. [17], Swoopes continued as a member of the USA team at the 1996 Olympics, held in Atlanta, Georgia. All player air travel to regular-season games will be, at a minimum, premium economy class. Games airing on ESPN, ESPN2 and CBS Sports Network, as well as other games taking place during the telecast windows of ESPN and ESPN2 games, are not available live on WNBA League Pass. Many teams have experienced drops in their attendance; (San Antonio Stars: −37.4%, Washington Mystics: −7.9%, Tulsa Shock: −7.2%)[88] these losses have caused the attendance of the WNBA to drop. We walked into the arena wearing tees that said Vote Warnock, a … With overseas leagues offering much higher salaries to many players than the WNBA currently provides, roughly 70% of the league's players go overseas in any given season. The 2018 and 2019 seasons each set the lowest average attendance in WNBA history (6,769 and 6,535). In the 2010 Finals, two new teams represented each conference: the Seattle Storm and the Atlanta Dream. Five teams share a market with an NBA G League team. Before the 2012 season, it was announced that users of LiveAccess would have to pay a $4.99 subscription fee to use the service. The WNBA regular season begins in May. After the 2010 season, President Orender announced she would be resigning from her position as of December 31. The team was to comprise the 10 best and most influential players of the first decade of the WNBA, with consideration also given to sportsmanship, community service, leadership, and contribution to the growth of women's basketball. After the 2003 season, the Cleveland Rockers, one of the league's original eight teams, folded because the owners were unwilling to continue operating the franchise. On October 20, 2009, the WNBA announced that the Detroit Shock would relocate to Tulsa, Oklahoma; the team is called the Tulsa Shock. This pattern has been in place since 2016 (changed from the best-of-three series 1–1–1 format for four teams in each conference, where the higher seed hosted the opening game in the first two rounds). Citizens of Atlanta were able to vote for their choices for the new team's nickname and colors. [15] The Dream, as they were named, played their first regular-season game on May 17, which was a 67–100 loss to the Connecticut Sun. After taking over a struggling franchise in 2002, former Detroit Pistons forward Bill Laimbeer had high hopes for the Detroit Shock in 2003. In the semifinals, the matchups by seed are 1st vs the lowest remaining seed and 2nd vs the highest remaining seed. Previously under the two-half format, both periods started with jump balls, presumably to eliminate the possibility of a team purposely losing the opening tip to gain the opening possession of the second half. Unlike the previous lockout, which affected the WNBA, president Laurel J. Richie confirmed that this lockout would not affect the WNBA. In 2010, the minimum salary for a player with three-plus years of experience was $51,000 while the maximum salary for a six-plus year player was $101,500 (the first time in league history that players can receive over $100,000). The Utah Starzz were affiliated with the Jazz before relocating to San Antonio as the Silver Stars under the ownership of the parent company of the Spurs in 2003. After each team played its 10 Cup games, the top team in each conference's Cup standings would advance to the Commissioner's Cup Final, a single match held in August. In 2015, the WNBA's attendance per game decreased by 3.4 percent to 7,318. Swoopes was recruited for the Houston Comets of the WNBA during the 1997 inaugural season. Each team would receive around $1 million per year. 1997). The Houston Comets, Minnesota Lynx, and Seattle Storm hold the distinction of having won the most championships with 4 titles each. NBC showed games from 1997 to 2002 as part of their NBA on NBC coverage before the league transferred the rights to ABC/ESPN. [23][24] At the 2011 WNBA All-Star Game, she was announced as one of the top 15 players in the 15-year history of the WNBA. Being intimate with [Alisa] or any other woman never entered my mind. [101] As sponsorships continued to grow with deals from ESPN to air WNBA games on ESPN and ESPN 2. The COVID-19 pandemic caused the tournament to be scrapped for the time being. The WNBA Playoffs usually begin in late September, though in years of the FIBA World Cup they begin in August. [5], On March 3, 2008, Swoopes signed with the Seattle Storm, ending her 11-year career with the Houston Comets. This was a record low for the WNBA since it was created in 1997. The team in each series with a better record has a home-court advantage. The lockout ended on November 26, and NBA teams would play a 66-game regular season following the lockout. The Atlanta Dream, Chicago Sky, Connecticut Sun, Dallas Wings, Las Vegas Aces, Seattle Storm, and Washington Mystics do not share an arena with a direct NBA counterpart, although four of the seven (the Dream, the Sky, the Wings, and the Mystics) share a market with an NBA counterpart, and the Storm shared an arena and market with an NBA team at the time of its founding. "[28] In 2016, she was voted into the WNBA Top 20@20, in celebration of the league's 20th anniversary. In 2004, The Game at Radio City was held in a place of a traditional All-Star Game. Led by 2020 fourth overall pick Chennedy Carter and Betnijah Laney, the Dream finished last season with a 7-15 record, missing the playoffs. The injury came at a time when the WNBA and its players' union were preparing to negotiate a new collective bargaining agreement,[78] following the union's announcement in November 2018 that it would opt out of the current CBA after the 2019 season. [14] On the occasion of the tenth anniversary, the WNBA released its All-Decade Team, comprising the ten WNBA players to have contributed, through on-court play and off-court activities, the most to women's basketball during the league's existence. The 2–2–1 pattern in the WNBA Finals has been in place since 2005. She was elected to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2016. [117], Top women's professional basketball league in the US, "WNBA" redirects here. The minimum league salary in 2020 was $57,000 for players with less than 3 years of experience, and $68,000 otherwise. Under head coach Van Chancellor, the team posted a 98–24 record through their first four seasons (16–3 in the Playoffs). Swoopes' 24.9 points-per-game average for her career is the best in school history; she also boasts zero triple-doubles and 23 double-doubles, 14 of which came during her senior year. The promotion of Griner, Delle Donne, and Diggins helped boost television ratings for the league by 28 percent, and half of the teams ended the season profitable. The salary cap for an entire team in 2010 was $827,000 (although it was later lowered to $775,000). The winner of the opening jump ball shall begin the 4th quarter with the ball out of bounds. [41] She was named one of the 20 female athletes of the decade for 2000 to 2010 by Sports Illustrated. The team was just 9–23 in 2002. The All-Star Game features star players from the Western Conference facing star players from the Eastern Conference. While the Atlanta Dream shared State Farm Arena with the Hawks from the Dream's inception in 2008 to 2016 and again in 2019, the Hawks never held any ownership stake in the WNBA team. In 2010, an exhibition game (Stars at the Sun) was held. It is currently composed of twelve teams. Taurasi accepted, largely because she had not had an offseason since playing college basketball more than a decade earlier. Led by the "Big Three" of Sheryl Swoopes, Tina Thompson, and four-time Finals MVP Cynthia Cooper, the Comets dominated every team in the league. In the current system, the eight best teams by the regular-season record, without regard to conference alignment, qualify for the playoffs. She hasn't had significant recovery time since before her senior season at UConn. Pepsi and Nike have also partnered up with the WNBA. [9], As of 2010, Swoopes was still a part of the women's basketball record books in many categories, including single-game scoring record (53 points on March 13, 1993 vs. Texas, tied for tenth place), single-season scoring (955 points in the 1993 season, fourth place), highest championship tournament scoring average (35.4 in the 1993 tournament, second place), best single-game championship scoring performance (47 points vs. Ohio State,[10] 1993 championship), which broke Bill Walton's record,[5] and scoring record for championship series (177 points, five games). New head coach Corey Gaines implemented Paul Westhead's style of play, and the Mercury averaged 92.82 points per game throughout the 2009 season. [77], A more recent incident that led to widespread media comment on the WNBA's salary structure was the torn Achilles suffered by reigning WNBA MVP Breanna Stewart while playing for another Russian side, Dynamo Kursk, in the 2019 EuroLeague Women final. [31], Swoopes was a color analyst for the Texas Tech women's basketball broadcast during the 2012–2013 season. The WNBA originated with 8 teams in 1997, and through a sequence of expansions, contractions, and relocations currently consist of 12 teams. McCoughtry led her team to the Finals for the second straight year, but despite breaking her own Finals scoring record, the Dream was swept for the second straight year, this time by the Minnesota Lynx, which won its first title behind a fully healthy Seimone Augustus. The 2011 season began with strong publicity helped by the rising young stars of the league and the NBA lockout. After playing at South Plains for two years, Swoopes transferred to Texas Tech,[5][8] near her hometown. Ratings still remain poor in comparison to NBA games. The Mercury was well-suited for the fast offense behind these three players. ", "Article V, Sections 7 and 8: Minimum Player Salary, Maximum Player Salary", "Sue Bird and Seattle Storm Lead WNBA Jersey and Merchandise Sales", "WNBA President Lisa Borders Steps Down to Become First-Ever President and CEO of Time's Up", "WNBA tabs CEO Engelbert as 1st commissioner", "With 20th season ahead, league sees attendance, ratings drop", "WNBA: Dip in attendance lowest in league history", "WNBA Turnstile Tracker: Attendance Down At End Of Regular Season", "WNBA attendance up 1 percent and increased viewership", "2015 WNBA season sees lowest fan attendance in league history", "WNBA's 20th season sees highest attendance in five years", "WNBA Scores Highest Attendance In Six Years During Record-Breaking Season", "WNBA agrees to a new TV deal with ESPN/ABC", "ESPN Signs Six-Year Extension With WNBA That Is Worth $12M Per Year", "WNBA and CBS Sports Agree To Multi-Year Television Partnership", "WNBA attendance, TV numbers increase again", "WNBA.com to Webcast More than 200 Games During 2009 WNBA Season", https://leaguepass.wnba.com/page/help#FAQ, "WNBA Captures Fans, Ends Regular Season With Record Growth", "WNBA expects at least six teams to post profit", "More Ratings: Paralympics, World Cup of Hockey, WNBA on ESPN — Sports Media Watch", "Audience Analysis: WNBA Regular-Season Viewership Hits New Low For ESPN/ESPN2", "ESPN Tips off WNBA Postseason with First Round Doubleheader Tonight", "More ratings: WNBA, Racing, Hard Knocks and more", "Former U-Conn. star Maya Moore laments the current state of the WNBA", https://frntofficesport.com/wnba-cbs-sports/, https://www.wnba.com/news/wnba-and-cbs-sports-agree-to-multi-year-television-partnership/, "Salary Cap for 2004-05 Is $43.87 million", WNBA statistics at Basketball-Reference.com, NCAA Women's Division I Cross Country Championship, NCAA Division I Field Hockey Championship, NCAA Division I Women's Golf Championships, NCAA Division I Women's Lacrosse Championship, NCAA Division I Women's Swimming and Diving Championships, NCAA Women's Indoor Track and Field Championship, NCAA Women's Outdoor Track and Field Championship, NAIA Women's Swimming and Diving Championships, NAIA Women's Indoor Track and Field Championship, NAIA Women's Outdoor Track and Field Championship, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Women%27s_National_Basketball_Association&oldid=1007227080, Women's basketball leagues in the United States, Short description is different from Wikidata, Pages using infobox sports league with unknown parameters, Articles with unsourced statements from February 2017, Articles with unsourced statements from January 2015, Wikipedia articles with WORLDCATID identifiers, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Most games (except broadcasts on ABC, ESPN or ESPN2, which are available on ESPN3) are available via this system.
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