Over the last few years, I’ve found myself drawn to the arena formerly known as America West Arena like one of those flies towards a comically-loud bug-zapper in a cartoon.
The draw for me has nothing to do with the arena’s main tenant (who have yet to win a single dang Men’s NBA title, somehow).
No, my attention has been drawn to the team in Phoenix that’s actually won something in the last 20 years.
That team, the Phoenix Mercury, has won three WNBA championships (most recently in 2014) while coming up on the wrong end of a four-game ass-kicking by A’ja Wilson and the Las Vegas Aces last year.
The Mercury also happen to find themselves in the crosshairs of the OutKick crowd of “sports” fans that wouldn’t know Chelsea Gray, Jewell Loyd or Jackie Young if you gave them $1 million.
No, these men (and they’re almost exclusively men, sadly) are the ones that are screaming at the clouds about injustice, mainly about Alyssa Thomas of the Mercury having the gall to play hard-nosed defense.
I’d wager my 401K that the Robert Griffins, Dan Dakichs and assorted oafs of the internet couldn’t tell you who the woman that pointed at Thomas’ teammate was (spoiler: it was Sophie Cunningham, who used to play for the Mercury, funnily enough).
Touch Some Grass, For The Love Of James Naismith
My simple solution to this crisis of confidence in the WNBA’s future would be for the jackals calling for a Congressional investigation into playing defense against a former top pick that shall remain nameless is equally simple.
That solution would be for them to actually get off their asses and go to the nearest WNBA arena, pay for a ticket (doesn’t matter where, just pay for one) and enjoy the show.
For the last half-decade, my wife and I have done just that, including last year, when we were able to score tickets to each of the Mercury’s postseason home games.
If the jovial nature of having a safe space for everyone (yes, including white, cisgendered men) gives you the ick then that means the sport’s not for you and you can leave.
On that note, such a decision means you forfeit the right to bloviate about what players in the league are doing, however, as you clearly are not capable of opening your Liberty (or Baylor)-educated mind to new things.
The WNBA’s Doing Fine, Actually
If seeing a league that opens its collective arms to a city’s LGBTQIA+ community, while supporting community social justice initiatives (see the Atlanta Dream’s protest that led to the sale of the team, for instance) is too much for you to stomach, there’s a door waiting for you to walk through.
If seeing a player base that’s largely Black drives you away, then that opens up another seat for someone who actually appreciates diversity to sit in.
And trust me, there are plenty of us that are more than happy to do so, with nine teams averaging at least 10,000 fans per game this season, including the Mercury, who are currently eighth league-wide, at 10,572.
Thanks for the concern about a league that is surviving and thriving, though. Everyone will remember it when the charlatans chastising the league for its very existence moves on to the next pulpit it can try (and fail) to bully.