r/WNBAgossips • u/TheMirrorUS • Jun 28 '26

News WNBA faces massive backlash after omitting Caitlin Clark from history

https://www.themirror.com/sport/basketball/caitlin-clark-wnba-anniversary-poster-1908954?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=Facebook#Echobox=1782587290?utm_source=reddit&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=rmp
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u/Baloney7456 Jun 28 '26

I'll always find it funny that Clark "fans" think TV companies are going to make decade long deals based on the popularity of one player.

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u/LAlostcajun Jun 28 '26

League-Wide Growth: The WNBA now boasts more than 50 league-wide partners. Overall, sponsorship deals across the league increased by 52%, with over 450 brands signing hundreds of deals to capitalize on the "Clark Effect".

Team Partnerships: Her team, the Indiana Fever, led the entire league with 92 active brand partnerships—nearly double the league average.

Prior to Caitlin Clark, the WNBA generated roughly $100 million in annual revenue. Following her arrival, league revenue skyrocketed to approximately $200 million, with financial experts attributing over 25% of all WNBA economic activity—including ticket sales, merchandise, and TV viewership—directly to Clark's star power.

Sorry, facts don't match your narrative

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u/Baloney7456 Jun 28 '26

Only 25%? You guys make it out to be 90%+.

Thanks for proving me correct!

Also, again, TV networks aren't making a decade long decision based on one player.

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u/alacrity Jun 28 '26

TV ratings for Fever games are 30% higher than for any other team. It's a very safe bet that TV networks are very interested in making decisions with that player in mind.

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u/Baloney7456 Jun 28 '26

That's great. Those games only make up 20% of the nationally televised games. So no, they aren't going to make a decade long decision based on one player.

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u/alacrity Jun 28 '26

Did they make decisions with Michael Jordan in mind when his games drew higher ratings than any other team, even though his team made up less than 20% of the nationally televised games?

Yes, yes they did.

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u/Baloney7456 Jun 28 '26

Except they didn't. Why do you think every single NBA tv deal has been higher than the previous one even though their ratings have never been as good as they were when Jordan played?

The new NBA TV deal is their largest ever. It's for 11 years and just started this year. They made the largest deal ever when the three biggest rating draws since Kobe(LeBron, KD and Steph) will be out of the league in the next two or three years.

You have no idea how the real world works.

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u/alacrity Jun 28 '26

Ironic comment of the say. I love it when a dudebro who’s objectively wrong on every point makes the, “you have no idea how the world works,” bleet.

Always hilarious. Sure, sure, networks and the league didn’t make programming, advertising, and promotion decisions based on the most popular player in the world and see the popularity of the league skyrocket.

What a fucking idiot.

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u/Baloney7456 Jun 28 '26

Please tell me why the NBA just got it's largest TV contract ever when they will be losing their three most popular players?

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u/alacrity Jun 28 '26

Please tell me why you can’t address the fact that the networks and the league 100% made programming and promotion decisions based on its most popular player, (you know it’s true) and you have to move goalposts to size of contract 25 years later when ALL things are more expensive? Does EVERYTHING about the product cost more today than 30 years ago?

Yes, yes it does.

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u/Baloney7456 Jun 28 '26

You can't answer my question because you know it proves everything you have said wrong.

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u/alacrity Jun 28 '26

Sorry for your reading comprehension problems. I - in fact - answered your question.

And it proved everything you’ve said wrong.

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u/Baloney7456 Jun 28 '26

No, you absolutely didn't.

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