To start, I was on a plane last Tuesday, heading back home
to New Jersey. Instead of just looking
at the slides to see what we discussed and having an opinion about it, when I was
not there seemed kind of foolish, so instead I would like to talk about the
final presentation. My group had a very
interesting theme that we followed and that was the WNBA vs. NBA. We compared basically everything there is to
compare with the two leagues. The
differences among them are far from comprehendible. There simply is not one statistical figure
that is anywhere near each other in regards to the two league, yet many people
think it is unfair that the WNBA is not televised or earning more money. The games were found to be less exciting in
our research, the salaries were know where near each other, and the attendance was so far off
as well. When looking specifically at
the salaries, most would say that it is typical women make less than men for
doing the same thing, but that is not the case here. Although both basketball, the WNBA and NBA
are two completely different professional leagues and the game is played in two
totally different ways. Also the WNBA
has such a significantly lower net worth that some NBA teams could nearly buy
out the entire WNBA league. It is expected
that when attendance is so low, players should be paid less. When attendance averages more than double in
the NBA, why wouldn’t those players get paid more? Granted some of their pay is outrageous to
the common person like you or I, but plain and simple the sports are way too
different in nearly every aspect to be compared fairly.
This is very interesting topic but I agree that the NBA should be paid more just because they are the more popular sport. If they bring in more money then they should be paid more. It is sad that more people don't like the WNBA though. Maybe if a women's basketball league was started at the same time as the men's then this would be equally as popular. I wonder how popular a co-ed league would be?
ReplyDeleteSam Melchor
Gene,
ReplyDeleteI am glad you brought this up because i was thinking along the same lines in class today when the group was presenting. Yes, WNBA players make less than NBA players but it is not even fair to compare the two. First off, a max deal of roughly $103,000 seems decent since the league is worth so much less than the NBA. All that we are seeing is the market dictating what players are worth. NBA players are paid the most on average because their sport makes the most amount of money compared to the amount of people they share it with. In the NBA they only have a maximum of 15 roster spots to split their salary cap. Compared to the NFL, which makes considerably more money, but they split their monies amongst 60 or so players.
Aaron Mehling
It is such an interesting look into male v. female professional sports. But the bottom line is the NBA does it better, not because it is comprised of male athletes but simply because it is a bigger entity, more popular. Women's basketball has rarely seen the respect it deserves. Yes, it is a completely different style of play- but that doesn't make it an entirely different game. Just executed with plays, slower pace, and less flashy acts. The way the NBA has gone global is unprecedented in professional sport with the only close comparison being soccer. It's just a different consumer in today's society. Here's the real comparison.... let's put female basketball players in lingerie and see if the NBA comparison is any different!
ReplyDeleteStephanie Loomis
I agree with the fact that the WNBA players are paid less because their league is worth less. I sort of compare it to that of the other professional leagues where the players get paid less. For instance, Canadian Football League players and Arena Football League players get paid less than NFL players for doing essentially the same job. This is because their leagues don't make as much money. One can relate it to real world jobs too. For instance, a high school athletic director would get paid significantly less than a big time college programs athletic director. To take it one step further a Mid-Americsn Conference Athletic Director wouldn't get paid as much as an SEC athletic director because their league isn't worth as much and doesn't have as much money. In all, I don't think that WNBA players are getting paid less because they are women, but more because their league isn't making as much money as the NBA.
ReplyDelete-Tim Love
DeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteIt is clear that the NBA does everything better than the WNBA from publicity to marketing to promotions.However there is one thing the WNBA lacks that is what draws Americans to sport games, and that is scoring. Lets face it, when it comes to any sport in America the more offense there is the more popular the sport is. Just look at history. The NHL changed its rules, they took away the 2-line pass, they became stricter on penalties, which creates more power-play opportunities. All of these changes have led to increased scoring in the NHL. Now the NFL, a look at all of the protection that the Quarterback is offered, look at all of these helmet to helmet and leading with the helmet rule changes that are only imposed on defensive players. The shootouts is what draws the American fan to the game. Just look at how slow progress is for soccer in America, and that is because there is not a lot of scoring in soccer, which turns the average American sports fan away. The easiest way for the WNBA to gain in popularity is for the teams to score more points. Some people said it in class, they do not want to see a 72-70 game, they want a high scoring fast pace game.
ReplyDelete-Derek Brewer
It makes sense that the WNBA players are paid less than the NBA because their league is worth less. The NBA does a great job with advertising and marketing for their fans, and that is where the WNBA lacks. I partially think that the WNBA players are getting paid less because they are women. I think that because they are woman and because of their playing style is why the WNBA isn't making as much money as the NBA. I have never been a fan of watching women play basketball. Even when I knew that the BGSU women's basketball had a better record than the Men's basketball team a couple years ago, I still didn't like watching the women play basketball. I would rather watch men play the sport because it's more exciting. Therefore, I think the NBA is more entertaining to me and to everyone else. That is why the NBA has a higher revenue and why the players get paid more. People like to be entertained and they would rather watch NBA players dunk and cross-over rather than WNBA players set a perfect pick. I think these factors effect how much money the two businesses are worth. In the end, it is clear that the NBA has a bigger fan base and revenue because it is more entertaining to watch and popular than the WNBA.
ReplyDelete-Kody Burlingame
Hi Gene,
ReplyDeleteThis is an interesting topic, especially since I've done extra research since we presented on this topic during class. It's truly amazing how much WNBA players make. This is a main reason why many women players play over-seas. They make twice the salary they would in the states and also get to experience another side of the world. Some WNBA players do both, and I don't know if that is still allowed, but in the past it has happened. Unless a WNBA is a star or makes a lot of money with advertisements the average payroll is very low. This is unfortunate, but it's also the reality because the league doesn't make nearly as much as the NBA. However, during our research we realized that sales for the WNBA has gone up as of late. Also this league hasn't been around nearly as long as the NBA, so the league still needs an opportunity to grow!
-Brett Creamer
I agree that the two leagues are entirely different. They attract totally different fan bases, among several other differences. I agree that since the NBA is more popular, they should earn more money and be rewarded for that. I also think the WNBA still needs some time for a breakthrough. It is still a very young organization. I know there were several women's leagues prior to the NBA that were unsuccessful, and to my knowledge, this has been the most success a women's league has had so far. I am curious to see if the WNBA will have something happen in the future to make it more popular.
ReplyDeleteJenn Zoellick
Certainly the two leagues are entirely different from every aspect except the court and the rules of basketball. The demand to watch an NBA game is way higher than to see a WNBA game. There is no changing this because of what the fans enjoy seeing. Sure you could promote more and advertise your way into the best season in franchise history but it won’t last. Until the ladies begin to dunk and show signs of a dominating presence in games, the WNBA is stuck where it is at. I really think lowering the hoop is the best idea for the league. Once the initial hype of the WNBA lowering the hoop goes away then it will really be time to start promoting and advertising that way the teams can build a strong base for their organizations. It is unfortunate for the athletes who play now because of how little they get paid but then again I would love to play a professional sport as a 2nd job. It would be awesome to earn money for playing a sport, as long as they covered medical bills for possible injuries. All in all I think it is time for the WNBA to change and make their games more exciting for fans to watch or they wont be able to pay their players any more than they are now.
ReplyDeleteBY: RJ Hefflinger
This is very interesting to me because I only know about NBA in USA. I didn't know that WNBA. When I lived in my country, I only watched only NBA also, who my country friends don't know about that WNBA. However, I could know and tried to research about what is WNBA. WNBA's marketing promotion was very interesting when I searched about WNBA. I think, this is an interesting topic.
ReplyDelete-Junho Song-