During the second half of the 2021 WNBA season, the New York Liberty traveled on charter planes several times. They avoided long lines at the airport. They avoided long delays. As a result, they paid a price: $500,000 – a league-record fine for violating the collective bargaining agreement.
Two summers later, the theme of air transport remains at the forefront WNBA speech. An incident on Saturday involving Brittney Griner reignited these conversations. Nibbler and the Phoenix Mercury were traveling on a commercial airline from Dallas to Indiana, via Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport, when a man, whom the WNBA called a “social media figure and provocateur” in a statement, s approached and shouted insults at Nibbler. Brianna Turner, Griner’s teammate, recounted the incident Saturday on Twitter, saying her team was “nervously huddled in a corner, not knowing how to move.” Turner said a day later: “It was obviously very alarming, very surprising, to have people waiting at your door to totally (disrupt) your day.” »
The WNBA often cites the league’s financial situation to explain why teams don’t fly privately to all of their games. Although some owners have strongly requested such services, league commissioner Cathy Engelbert told ESPN in February that charter flights for the 12 clubs for an entire season could cost around $25 million, warning against the financial feasibility of the effort.
In April, the league announced changes to its charter flight program – including private flights for all playoff games and charter flights for back-to-back contests – but the change is only in place for this season. Beyond finances, another explanation is commonly offered for why teams don’t fly private: the league is trying to maintain a competitive balance.
It is high time to put an end to this logic.
How do some around the WNBA define competitive advantage? “To be honest, I’m not sure.” Freedom star ahead Breanna Stewart said Sunday. “Because having a training center is a competitive advantage, if you want to look at it from that angle. Why is it considered differently from a charter? If you know we have owners who are willing to support it and do it?
Competitive inequalities can be seen in all sports. The WNBA is no different. Some owners invest more money on their list. Some teams have better players. Other franchises have larger support staff.
As Stewart said, facilities also vary, especially now in the West, where the The Aces of Las Vegas practice in their own 64,000 square foot headquarters, equipped with personalized nameplates above each player’s locker with a TV and Mac mini-PC built inside. THE Chicago Sky, meanwhile, have been practicing at Sachs Recreation Center, a public gymnasium in suburban Deerfield, since 2011. Sky ownership is seeking locations for its own venue. But in the short term, even Sky’s star player recognizes the importance of an upgrade. ‘We have to keep up with the Joneses’, winger Kahleah Copper recently told the Chicago Sun-Times. Such deviations in installations have never justified a fine.
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The National Women’s Basketball Players Association made its thoughts on the links between competitive balance and air travel clear in a statement released Saturday: “As we continue to hear from our members throughout the start of the season and especially today with the situation involving the Phoenix Mercury At the Dallas Airport, we are very clear that the issue of charter travel is NOT a matter of “competitive advantage.”
“I don’t really worry about competitive advantage,” Turner said. Athleticism. “I worry about health and safety. I think health and safety should be an overall priority. I mean, maybe we’re at a competitive disadvantage if we have to go through this every time we’re at the airport.
Added fever protection Erica Wheeler: “My opinion is that we deserve charter flights. I don’t care about competitive advantage or not.
The WNBPA stated that “allowing teams to fly charter is ONLY about the health and safety of the players, and until the league and teams take this issue seriously, situations like this will continue to occur “. The WNBPA may be right.
“Every commercial flight imposed on our players poses a threat to their health and safety,” their statement continued.
As Saturday’s incident revealed, that is certainly the case for Griner, who returned in December from a 10-month detention in Russia. (The WNBA said Saturday that before the season it “worked with the Phoenix Mercury and BG team to ensure their safety during their trip.”)
The W is made up of owners from a variety of financial backgrounds, some of whom could more easily afford to travel by charter plane. Aces owner Mark Davis is one of them. He said Athleticism last month, when he bought the team in January 2021, his two “necessary” priorities were creating a “family environment” and a “home”. More specifically: “What we wanted to do is build them a world-class facility that is second to none,” he explained.
This has already enriched the experience of its players. Why is it any different to invest in more comfort 30,000 feet in the air while crucially improving player safety? Of course, teams using charter planes might be able to sign bigger stars. But teams with more investment – who can open an immaculate training center with a nutrition bar, sauna, hot and cold plunge pools and hydro treadmill – can already do so and not be sentenced to a fine.
Oh, and just because you board a private plane doesn’t mean more victories will follow.
Remember the second half of Liberty 2021, when its players were treated to luxurious travel gear? From August 15 until the end of the season, New York went just 2-9.
– Athleticism‘s James Boyd contributed to this report.
(Phoenix Mercury photo: Christian Petersen/Getty Images)
