🚨🚨 𝐁𝐑𝐄𝐀𝐊𝐈𝐍𝐆 !! WNBA : 37-year-old ponders retirement as expansion issues persist .

 

This week in women’s basketball: Candace Parker weighs in on the future of the WNBA as expansion woes continue

Candace Parker clarifies her WNBA future as confusion continues over another WNBA expansion team. The NCAA’s independent review of the 2023 championship game also raises questions.

Kato Ariail on November 11, 2023 at 2:00 pm

On “Good Morning America,” Candace Parker gave insight into her WNBA future.

In the midst of an exciting opening week for women’s colleges, read the latest women’s basketball news and notes:

 

 

Parker Considers Retirement (or Not)

Send a fax? If he’s healthy, he’ll be back!

 

Candace Parker said Thursday morning that her health will determine her eligibility for a 17th WNBA season in 2024. Appearing on Good Morning America to promote her upcoming ESPN documentary Candace Parker: Ruthless, Parker said, “When I’m healthy, I play. But I don’t play in pain anymore. It’s too important — trick or treating, my kids winning.” it’s too important. If I say hello, I’m playing.”

 

He elaborated: “I’m thinking about my options. If I feel really good, I’ll play. It’s a big if. I have to shape my leg. The leg was pretty bad last year. I don’t want to cheat the game or myself.”

 

 

Parker also considered closing the book on his legendary career last season before signing a one-year deal with the Las Vegas Aces, a positive factor for the eventual champions before a serious leg ended his season. He will become an unrestricted free agent again this offseason. Learn more about the WNBA’s expansion problem

In The Next , Howard Megdal reports on the reactions of WNBA stakeholders — members of the front office and ownership groups — to Portland’s now-stalled expansion bid. According to Megdal:

 

In conversations with members of the front office, including members of ownership groups, a mix of confusion, anger and concern permeated the discussion about what happened, although several sources in the room told me that Commissioner Cathy Engelbert reflected the business climate. common in league meetings last week, right after the Portland news. Megdal also suggests that more and more WNBA owners are “starting to think about where the league is going” under Engelbert.

While the uncertainty of whether one or two expansion teams will join the league in 2025 prevents organizations from effectively planning future roster decisions, existing franchises also worry that accepting one expansion team could upset the competitive balance of the WNBA’s wealthy Golden State franchise. Could become an immediate title contender through the 2025 expansion draft, 2025 free agency and 2025 WNBA draft.

Megdal also notes that Denver and Charlotte remain “serious bidders” for another expansion team.

NCAA reveals results of national championship game ref review

Somewhat bizarrely, the NCAA chose to release expedited results of an independent review of the officiating during last spring’s national championship game.

The review determined that the game’s refereeing did not meet expectations. According to Lynn Holzman, the NCAA vice president for women’s basketball, “In the championship game itself, for example, we typically have a performance that, I think, is 91 percent historically. In that game, the percentage of correct calls was below that, around 88 percent.”

 

It’s worth questioning the purpose of sharing this information with the public. As a new season begins, the rather misleading review—as the 88 percent correct call performance in the national championship game was on par with the tournament average—only will foster fan frustration with officiating. The data also helps differentiate the referees in the national championship games, which, South Carolina head coach Dawn Staley noted, were all women of color.

Although the performance of referees is certainly not above criticism, offering them the kind of support that would help them improve – namely a higher salary for a completely thankless job – would seem a more productive and positive approach.

The WNBA-ION partnership is a success

The first season of “WNBA Friday Night Spotlight on ION” helped grow the league’s television audience by 24 percent. Friday night double headers reached 12.3 million viewers over 15 weeks. Commissioner Cathy Engelbert expressed her satisfaction in the press release and noted:

 

When we partnered with Scripps Sports for the 2023 season, we hoped their reach would elevate the viewership of the WNBA, and Scripps has done that time and time again. New fans found us. Faithful fans embraced the appointment viewing. This success is only going to grow in the future. More From Swish Appeal

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