Posted on 07/11/2018 2:55:54 PM PDT by all the best
A case can be made that WNBA players are actually overpaid relative to what consumers actually want. After all, the WNBA is subsidized by the NBA in a variety of ways including direct financial support, free publicity, and the fact that many WNBA franchises are owned by the city’s NBA owner. In fact, the WNBA’s big television contract was itself a byproduct of the channel reworking its agreement with their male counterpart.2 So instead of grumbling about the salaries male basketball players enjoy, perhaps A’ja Wilson should be thankful that the men's product helps bolster her own paycheck. At the end of the day, just about any article focusing on how athletes are either under- (or over-) paid stems from the fallacious view that their compensation is an inherent product of their labor, rather than the subjective values of consumers. The financial success of professional athletes has almost nothing to do with their talent and everything to do with the entertainment the public receives from it. LeBron James is one of the greatest athletes in human history, but if his sport of choice generated the public interest the WNBA has, he would not be signing a $154 million dollar contract. This also helps explains why e-sports players are making more money than the best in the WNBA. No pain can still result in financial gain. Of course consumer preferences can change. Perhaps the American public will come to appreciate the strong fundamentals of the WNBA and, as a result, salaries will improve. Until then, women basketball players should perhaps look for markets that place greater value on their skill. Like Russia.
Government interventionism also benefits the sport, as Title IX requirements have forced colleges to maintain women's basketball programs if they wish to keep their men's team.
(Excerpt) Read more at mises.org ...
It is impossible to change the channel fast enough when the WNBA comes on.
Tax writeoffs.
There’s still a WNBA?
They don't use the upper level seats, to make the press photos look better. I won't post any because they are mostly copyrighted, but a quick search will show you at least some of the shots of the half-empty arenas.
Breanna Stewart is about the only WNBA player I’d pay to see. And maybe Sue Bird in her prime.
I think the WNBA needs to demand equal pay for equal work. They get nowhere near what the men do, it’s obvious discrimination.
Furthermore, former men that now identify as women should be allowed to play in the league.
Well, there you go.
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