Why I’m All In on the WNBA

My wife and I have long had a trip to Louisville planned for next weekend to celebrate her birthday.

But then on Wednesday night, the Chicago Sky clinched a berth in the WNBA Finals, which will — coincidentally — be played in Chicago next weekend. Missing the Sky in the Finals was not an option for us as first time season ticket holders.

So, we cancelled our long awaited trip and will instead be spending her birthday weekend hopefully watching the Sky clinch their first WNBA title.

If you would’ve told me that I’d be doing this a year ago, I likely would’ve laughed at you. Up until the 2021 season, I’ve been one of those people who didn’t pay much attention to the WNBA at all.

Part of it stems from the fact that the league plays the bulk of its games in the summer, and my summers have historically been dominated by Cubs games and street festivals. Part of it stems from the fact that I’m not the biggest hoops junkie. WNBA merchandise? Not easy to come by, even despite the league’s deal with Nike and fancy new uniforms that are unique to each team and aren’t solely vehicles for advertisers. The other part of it stems from the fact that the WNBA hasn’t gotten the media exposure that it deserves, with only the Chicago Sun-Times devoting any significant resources to covering the Sky in recent years.

That all changed this season. The Sky, as has been well chronicled, acquired basketball legend and Naperville native Candace Parker, who my wife went to school with and whose shot she actually blocked when they were competing against each other in fourth grade.

I’ve been wanting to get season tickets to some team for awhile. Knowing that, as soon as Candace signed with the Sky, my wife told me we were getting Sky season tickets.

Turns out I’m the one who has been missing out all along.

Now? Now I’ve got multiple Sky jerseys and am planning my life around Sky games. I’m watching out of market WNBA games and screaming at my TV the way I do when the Cubs are playing. I’m bringing my friends out to games and trying to get more people on board as well.

We also didn’t think twice about renewing our season tickets long before our rep had to ask.

Why?

Well for one thing, the games are really, really fun. Every night in the WNBA you’re watching the best basketball players in the world ply their craft. The action moves even faster in person than it does on TV and the games aren’t a huge time commitment.

Even during last night’s semifinal clincher, we were able to get in and out of the arena in roughly two hours. That’s perfect for weeknights when you want to catch a game without staying out too late, or weekend nights when you might want to make a dinner reservation somewhere else in town at a decent hour.

It’s affordable. For our two season tickets two rows behind the basket in the lower level, we’re paying $16 per ticket per game. Similar seats to a NBA game would cost roughly 20x that price, a nice occasional treat, but not something the average person can afford on a regular basis.

The players, and the storylines in general, are interesting. You’ve got established veterans like Parker and Sue Bird going toe to toe with younger stars like Sabrina Ionescu every night. This Sky team in particular is incredibly likable, whether it’s Courtney Vandersloot’s crisp passes, Candace doing stuff that only Candace can do, or the energy that Diamond DeShields and Kahleah Copper bring to the gym every night. We’ve never left a game feeling like we didn’t get our money’s worth.

There’s also the fact that there’s something to be said about the players not being afraid to speak up. The 2020 WNBA season was, in many ways, defined by the fact that the players stood up for social justice. There is no question that the Atlanta Dream and the WNBA as a whole tipped a Georgia Senate seat by being more vocal about the importance of getting out to vote. It’s one thing to pay lip service to supporting equality — It’s quite another to actually have your actions back your words. That in and of itself is worth supporting.

Lastly, the atmosphere in general is pretty incredible, especially during the playoffs. The Sky’s home, Wintrust Arena, is more intimate and less cavernous than other venues, which means even the smaller crowds have a buzz to them and the larger playoff crowds — like the 8,200 who showed up last night — tend to be more engaged at all points during the game.

Rearranging our travel plans to experience that in person again? Easiest decision I’ve made in a long time.