Sports History – Sharing History

On June 21, 1997, two WNBA teams took the court at the Forum in Los Angeles. That day, the L.A. Sparks and the New York Liberty would face off in the inaugural game of the WNBA, launching a league that has provided entertainment, encouraged young girls to participate in sports, and taken a stand against a number of social issues.

In 1997, the NBA created the WNBA, the women’s counterpart to the NBA league. Eight teams were created, all owned by the NBA, in cities that already hosted NBA teams. These eight teams included the Charlotte Sting, the Cleveland Rockers, the Houston Comets, the New York Liberty, the Los Angeles Sparks, the Phoenix Mercury, the Sacramento Monarchs, and the Utah Starzz. The first game of the league brought together the teams from the two largest cities: New York and L.A. Approximately 15,000 people gathered at the Forum on June 21, 1997 to see the two teams face off.

By 2002, the NBA allowed for the franchising of team ownership. Today, the WNBA has 12 teams in two conferences across the country. Today, the average WNBA game draws about 1.2 million viewers. However, despite the continually rising popularity of women’s basketball, it is estimated that women’s sports overall only receives about 15% of airtime on major networks. As recently as last year, ESPN did not place the NCAA Women’s Championship in a primetime slot. The WNBA also receives just a tiny sliver of the marketing power given to the NBA. The WNBA has also highlighted the gender pay gap. In 2024, the WNBA’s number one draft pick, Caitlin Clark, who plays for Indiana Fever, was given a contract for approximately $338,000 over four years. The NBA number one draft pick was given a contract for $55.2 million over four years.

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On October 31, 1950, Earl Lloyd became the first African American to play in an NBA game. Three years after Jackie Robinson’s debut as part of the MLB, Lloyd took the court as a player for the Washington Capitols, scoring six points and pulling down 10 rebounds. A legendary defensive player, Lloyd did more than just play a good game. He helped to pave the way for players of color who entered the league after him.

Earl Lloyd was born in Alexandria, Virginia in 1928. There, he was a stand-out high school basketball player. He went on to play for West Virginia State University. Immediately following his graduation in 1950, Lloyd was the second African American drafted into the NBA, chosen in the ninth round by the Washington Capitols. He played for the first time on October 31, 1950 in a game against the Rochester Royals. Lloyd was the first of the three African American players drafted that year, including Chuck Cooper and Nat Clifton, to play. He was also the first African American to win an NBA title in 1955.

Following his years playing basketball, which were fraught with discrimination and vitriol by fans, hotels, and restaurants as the team traveled, Lloyd became the first African-American assistant coach in the league for the Detroit Pistons. He became the head coach three years later. Lloyd said of his time in the NBA that he was “in the right place at the right time. I don’t play it up or down. I just hope I conducted myself where I made it easier for others, and I think I did.”

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Tag: Sports History

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