The WNBA’s Disappointing Response to an NSFW Issue

This post is a part of WNBA Week+.  During this stretch, I will release several blog posts related to the WNBA, including news stories, player discussions, and teams’ seasons.

 

Due to timing and how many other things have gone on in basketball, I have not written anywhere near enough about the WNBA.  There have been a lot of good things that have happened this year, including the games themselves, a fun All-Star Weekend (the game was what it was due to injuries, but the events and selections were awesome), an interesting CBA negotiations (as a brief clarification, the issue comes down to the revenue sharing, as the most recent CBA had the players getting 9% of revenue, which is tiny even compared to UFC, which has a reputation for not paying their athletes), and an exciting playoff race, especially starting with the two-seed.  That said, there are also several negative aspects, most notably the injuries, continued sexist rhetoric, and the league’s continued poor response of handling issues.  The most notable of the latter has come from a recent trend of sex toys being thrown onto the court during games.

On July 29^th, a man who was since arrested threw a dildo onto the court of a Golden State-Atlanta game.  Since then, there have been several more attempts with at least one not making it onto the court and hitting a child.  A group responsible for a meme coin has taken responsibility for this (it is worth noting that a spokesperson for them has claimed this is for disruptive purposes and not due to it being a women’s league, and has also denied that the two individuals arrested were involved with them) and has made it sound like the WNBA is not the only league that could deal with this.  The WNBA has made multiple statements about this, first decrying the behavior and threatening bans (days after the first incident), then decided to ban many bags at the games, and then announced that they would be cooperating with law enforcement on these matters.  While the incidents have seemed to subside a bit, I considered it to be a big issue, especially since it happened several times.  While there is a large focus on the misogyny and sexism related to the events, I think the safety issues are a bigger focus, as an unsuspecting individual on the court (player, official, or other staff) could end up slipping on one if they don’t notice it (some have defended this by saying these types of things happen at hockey games, but I also have questioned the safety of these, especially on ice).

Considering the safety issues of this situation, I have been thoroughly disappointed with the WNBA’s response to it.  First off, I felt like they waited too long to take any initial action.  Even if the incident was a one-off, they should have made a statement decrying it as soon as it started becoming notable (I would hold off on saying they should have made it immediately because that would draw unnecessary attention to it).  From the get-go, they should have announced that they would cooperate with law enforcement on any case; even in regions where it would not have been able to be prosecuted, this wording would emphasize that they could also be involved in a civil suit.  The reason that I think they didn’t do a good job is not based on sexism in this case, but rather due to safety; while some would not like me to say this, safety has to be a much greater priority than sexism (while fighting sexism is important, safety is much more important).  Also, their attempted bag policy was ill-conceived for one obvious reason:  most venues have a policy regarding the size of bags, and most dildos are bigger than the size of these bags.  I questioned the effectiveness of this immediately, and I was stunned that this wasn’t an immediate consideration.  Ultimately, I got the vibe that they figured that this would be a short-lived trend that would solve itself and only added to their action as more occurred, which is a problem when, again, player safety is on the line.

Ultimately, I probably shouldn’t be surprised in my disappointment in the situation.  I have often been disappointed with decisions made by the WNBA’s office, especially with statement and actions by commissioner Cathy Englebert.  This is the same commissioner who ignored the racial aspects of the Angel Reese-Caitlin Clark “rivalry” rather than condemning vile behavior, rhetoric, and racism, resulting in her backtracking and offering another statement.  This was the same commissioner who decided to wear a New York dress to a Finals Game 5 that New York won one of the most poorly and one-sided officiated I’ve seen in the league.  This is the same commissioner who has been in charge of a messy Connecticut Sun sale that is now lapsed while appearing to be solely to allow for a bidding war.  This is the same commissioner who is overseeing what appears to be the next league to be locked out.  In saying all of this, I’m not surprised that I am disappointed in their response when it comes to player safety, especially when considering all the other issues I have had over the last few years.