Chelsea Gray of the Los Angeles Sparks chats with NBA players like Quinn Cook of the Los Angeles Lakers and Michael Carter-Williams of the Orlando Magic. They are all professional basketball guards in their 20s who can talk about basketball and life and who have mutual respect.
Friendships between WNBA and NBA players have been commonplace over the years. They often start – as in the case of Gray and Cook at Duke – when the players are in the same college.
But while the WNBA returned to play Friday in Bradenton, Florida after a two-day work stoppage that coincided with the NBA players’ decision to postpone the playoffs as a social justice protest, it’s remarkable how much stronger the bond is. between players from both leagues. It’s a bond that transcends basketball.
Although WNBA players are used to seeing their accomplishments on and off the pitch overlooked by some industries, women’s longstanding commitment to social justice has not been ignored by the NBA.
“They were actually the leaders of this. They set the tone from the start, even before NBA players started to protest,” former NBA center and ESPN analyst Kendrick Perkins said. “They brought awareness to this a long time ago.
“What have they done [Thursday], get together, hug your arms and have the special one on ESPN that talks about social justice … it was a beautiful thing to see.
This week there was also the appreciation from players like Chris Paul of Oklahoma City, who noted that when the NBA decided Wednesday to sit in the Milwaukee Bucks-led response to Jacob Blake’s shooting in Kenosha, Wisconsin , the WNBA did the same.
“I congratulate our men, our brothers for noticing,” said Angel McCoughtry of Las Vegas. “We need their voices to help ours too.”
1:38
Sue Bird and Elizabeth Williams appreciate the impact of protesters on the streets, but believe voting is the best way to create change.
McCoughtry came up with the idea of wearing Breonna Taylor’s name on the WNBA jerseys this season. The WNBA has placed special emphasis on the “Say Her Name” campaign for women who have been killed or injured in interactions with the police. Taylor was shot dead in March during a police raid on her home.
Gray is one of the WNBA players who raises money for social justice causes based on performance. On Friday, the Sparks announced that Gray will donate $ 50 for every assist he registers in the 2020 WNBA season to Equality California, an LGBTQ rights organization, and Rock The Vote. The Sparks will match his contribution.
The league has created bubble shirts that espouse player causes, including “Vote Warnock” shirts in support of Rev. Raphael Warnock, who is challenging Atlanta Dream owner Kelly Loeffler for the US Senate seat in Georgia.
“The WNBA women have been very creative about how things are going,” Perkins said. “And we’re all in this together. And it’s very important to stay together because that’s what will make us even more powerful and we’ll get things done.”
There were times, however, when WNBA players felt alone in supporting the issues they cared about. The league started in 1997, and while there was a strong overall message about women’s empowerment at the time, there wasn’t much external support specifically directed at black or LGBTQ issues. Laurel Richie, the third president of the league, who took over in 2011, should get credit for the progress on both counts.
Although the league had a misstep with Richie’s successor Lisa Borders when players were fined for wearing Black Lives Matter warm-up shirts in 2016, the fines were subsequently lifted and Borders offered player support on issues. of social justice. Current WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert – championship leader title change is not insignificant – fully agreed with the players union that social justice issues were to be at the forefront of this 2020 season in the bubble – and moving forward. .
Although their rumors have been amplified, WNBA players are aware of just how much bigger the NBA platform is. This is why it matters when NBA players wear WNBA hoodies and work directly with the WNBA on initiatives and give credit to women for the ideas they have had and the leadership they have shown.
2:00 am
Dream center Elizabeth Williams explains that the WNBA is sympathetic to the NBA and has chosen not to play any games on Wednesday night.
Seattle’s Sue Bird, who entered the WNBA as the No. 1 pick in 2002 and is the longest-serving active player in the league, said there are a number of reasons why the alliance between NBA and WNBA players over a series. of issues is stronger now than it was when he started his professional career.
“I think our championship is just more legitimate now,” Bird said. “And the men in the NBA grew up with our league, so it’s more of a natural partnership. And a lot of these guys and women in our league have gone to All-American games together and played college together. There’s just this connection, and extends to the professional ranks.
“We know the people in the Olympics. There’s a long list of ways we interact. And I think that has led us to want to unite. It’s also common ground, the things we’re talking about.”
Of course, there hasn’t been a greater example of commitment to a cause than four-time WNBA champion Maya Moore’s decision to stay out for the past two seasons while working to help family friend Jonathan Irons after spending 22 years in prison. .
Whether it’s criminal justice reform, Black Lives Matter, voter registration, LGBTQ support, women’s wage inequality, workplace mothers improvements or something else, WNBA players kept talking.
When you live at the crossroads of so many prejudices, as WNBA players do, you feel these issues at the core.
“We need to understand and take seriously that for women, especially women of color, is an even greater burden to carry,” said Los Angeles Sparks manager Derek Fisher, who played 18 seasons in the NBA. “There are many things as women that they are fighting for outside the right race: to fight to be valued, appreciated, respected, supported and invested in.
“Seeing them over the past couple of days continues to take an even stronger stance on what’s important to them when they don’t have the multimillion-dollar contracts and sponsorships that their male counterparts have, to still take the risk and take it stand … it was inspiring. “
.
