[BostonCard]

There once was a time when the NFL was an afterthought, it didn't become a behemoth through happenstance, and it is not guaranteed to remain the premier professional league in the US forever.  Likewise, there is nothing fundamental about women's basketball that dooms it to unprofitability, and if I had to predict which sport would grow faster in the next 20 years, I'd pick WBB over MBB.



BC

How?  I’m talking today. Men’s basketball generates enormous revenue. Maybe someday women’s hoops will. But it doesn’t at this time.

The NCAA structure was not dropped from above in its present state; it is the result of choices that have been made over decades.  And one shouldn't use the current state as a rationale for perpetuating the status quo.  There is no question that men's basketball is more profitable than women's basketball.  But, would the degree of that disparity still exist had the NCAA made different decisions with regards to how it marketed the respective teams?  And is it fair to penalize women's basketball for decisions made in the past that affect the present?

The problem, I think, is that it is not possible to know where women's basketball would wind up vis a vis men's basketball had marketing efforts been proportional to potential.  I think women's basketball would have been bigger but for NCAA and ESPN benign neglect, but despite my preference for the women's sport, I know enough people who appreciate the aspects of the men's sport (for example, the dunking) to know that complete parity would be unlikely, even with the best of efforts.

I don't know where that leaves us, other than hoping that the sport does better going forward and doesn't use the outcome of past mistakes as justification for repeating them going forward.

BC

[BostonCard]

There once was a time when the NFL was an afterthought, it didn't become a behemoth through happenstance, and it is not guaranteed to remain the premier professional league in the US forever.  Likewise, there is nothing fundamental about women's basketball that dooms it to unprofitability, and if I had to predict which sport would grow faster in the next 20 years, I'd pick WBB over MBB.



BC

How?  I’m talking today. Men’s basketball generates enormous revenue. Maybe someday women’s hoops will. But it doesn’t at this time.

The NCAA structure was not dropped from above in its present state; it is the result of choices that have been made over decades.  And one shouldn't use the current state as a rationale for perpetuating the status quo.  There is no question that men's basketball is more profitable than women's basketball.  But, would the degree of that disparity still exist had the NCAA made different decisions with regards to how it marketed the respective teams?  And is it fair to penalize women's basketball for decisions made in the past that affect the present?

The problem, I think, is that it is not possible to know where women's basketball would wind up vis a vis men's basketball had marketing efforts been proportional to potential.  I think women's basketball would have been bigger but for NCAA and ESPN benign neglect, but despite my preference for the women's sport, I know enough people who appreciate the aspects of the men's sport (for example, the dunking) to know that complete parity would be unlikely, even with the best of efforts.

I don't know where that leaves us, other than hoping that the sport does better going forward and doesn't use the outcome of past mistakes as justification for repeating them going forward.

BC