Val Ackerman Opening Statement: I’ll tell you that I’ve been with this since the beginning and I’ve never been as excited as I am this year about the caliber of play in the WNBA and now in women’s professional basketball here in the U.S. This year promises to be tremendously competitive, not just in the West, but in the East as well. Everybody, I know, will be gunning for the Sparks as they look to bring home their third WNBA championship.
At least from where I sit, there is simply no question that the game is evolving, very dramatically and very rapidly. Just like it did in men’s basketball for so many years before the game became what it is today in the NBA. In the women’s game, we are seeing so much more athleticism than we saw in the early years, there are many teams looking to run and play an up-tempo game. We are seeing, interestingly, much more versatility at the center position. We have centers in the WNBA now, in women’s pro basketball, who don’t just play the low block but are shooting the outside shot. We are also seeing much more size at the guard position in women’s basketball, with point guards in the six-foot range, which you didn’t see five years ago or 10 years ago, certainly 25 years ago, with players like Nikki Teasley and, looking ahead, players like Diana Taurasi, playing the point guard with great size.
It stands to be a very exciting year. In addition to some of the general points about the nature of the game, we have very compelling player stories as well. The league really still remains in many respects a veterans’ league, they remain in control of the outcome. We have leading the way this year, the return of Sheryl Swoopes, who was MVP last year, and Lisa Leslie of course, the Finals MVP. I remember Lisa and Sheryl as two of the first three players that we signed in the WNBA, back in 1996. The fact that they’re still leading the charge each and every year, I think, is a testament to their incredible talent and their staying power and their consistency. Two legends to watch this year, which all of us here are going to be following very closely their stories, of course with the return of Cynthia Cooper, who won four titles, and the first-time participation in the WNBA by Teresa Edwards, one of the greatest players ever in women’s basketball, she brings to the WNBA five Olympic medals. We think its going to be very exciting how Cynthia and Teresa test their skills against the rising stars in the league, of which we have many.
It looks like we will probably have fewer then 20 players left in the league this year from the original season of 1997, the league has become filled with great talent and young players, led by Tamika Catchings, Sue Bird, Swin Cash, Mwadi Mabika, Marie Ferdinand, Penny Taylor, so many who are poised to help transform in a dramatic way the women’s game and or course this years class, LaToya Thomas, Chantelle Anderson, Cheryl Ford and others. From all reports we get seem like they are very much up to the task and should make their contributions right away. I would note the league still remains very global, we expect this year to have as many as 20 percent of our player rosters taken by players from other countries. Of course, we have our first Korean player in the WNBA this year, the Olympian and World Championship player from the Korean National Team, Jung Sun-Min, who will be playing for our team in Seattle.
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Val Ackerman presents a commemorative WNBA jersey to Mark Brown, chairman of the Mohegan Tribe, introducing the WNBA's Connecticut Sun. M. David Leeds/NBAE/Getty Images |
Secondly, I just wanted to make a note about our new national television arrangements. We have new agreements with Disney and with Telemundo, and we are continuing are existing arrangements with the Oxygen network as well with NBA TV. By the way of highlights, given the cumulative reach of ABC, ESPN2, Oxygen, Telemundo and NBA TV, we are going to have more games telecast nationally than ever before this season in the WNBA. We are very pleased that our All-Star Game is moving over to broadcast television for the very first time, that game will be televised on ABC on Saturday, July 12. One of the benefits of our new arrangements is that we have more consistent daytime slots for our games on ABC. We will be seen on Saturdays in the late afternoon slot and on ESPN2 consistently on Thursday nights. We think that is going to help our fans find our games on television more easily, which we think will help in our efforts to continue to build our viewership, and I would also note that internationally our games are going to be televised this year again extensively. We are projecting that the games will be seen in about 178 countries this year. And finally, as a note, our TV schedule, as many of you know, does open this weekend with ABC televising the Connecticut Sun’s inaugural home game at Mohegan Sun Arena against the defending champion Sparks and that will be this Saturday, May 24 at 4 p.m. Eastern.
Finally, I just wanted to say, in addition to other programs we’ll be continuing this year in the WNBA, I don’t think any are as important as the ones where we work to make the league interactive and where we continue our outreach efforts. The ones that have become so important to our fans, particularly young girls, we are extraordinarily committed to continuing to reach them, influencing them in as positive away as possible. That’s why we have supported the strengthening of Title IX. It’s why we have put resources into the development of girls basketball programs through our Jr. WNBA programs, and leagues and clinics that conducted by our teams throughout the league. It’s the reason why we work very actively to network with organizations around the country that reach girls. Organizations like Girls Scouts and Girls Inc. and park and rec and the like. As a preview, it’s also the reason behind a new outreach initiative that we are going to be launching in a few days that will be designed to promote self-esteem and a healthy lifestyle among young people, both boys and girls alike.
Q: This past offseason was very tumultuous, what are some of the things you will remember most about April?
Ackerman: It was a busy offseason. I think the combination of having a restructured model and having a new collective bargaining agreement with our players were two very important tasks that we had to undertake going into the season. I think we have come out ahead now that they’re both completed. The restructuring gives us a model that will allow us to continue to grow as a league and most importantly that will allow us to get into some new markets that were previously off limits to us because of the intent to tie locally exclusively with NBA teams. In terms of bargaining, we now have a new agreement. It will provide us with stability and certainty over the course of at least the next four seasons, which will be very important for our sales efforts and also as we look to secure in the investment of new owner groups, which is important for the league to grow. I think in particular on the subject of bargaining, the fact that we now have the opportunity for increased movement of players between teams and the introduction for the first time of free agency in the WNBA will be a positive benefit for both the players and teams alike. We don’t have our preseason-ending rosters yet. As we’ve been tracking what been happening at the team level and following the movement opportunities for our players, I think we could have as many as a dozen players who could be changing teams this year, preliminarily just as a result of the movement provisions that are now contained in the collective bargaining agreement. I think that’s a real positive for the league.
Q: Do you see teams having more flexibility to improve.
Ackerman: Yes, I do. As you know, up until this agreement, the primary way for teams to build their player rosters were through the draft and through trades and if players were released we had a waiver claim mechanism, which allows players to go to other teams. Now we have new mechanisms in order for players to move teams. Jennifer Gillom in Los Angeles is a case in point of an important change that may be very beneficial for Los Angeles to have a player of her stature and her experience together with so many young players that may in fact prove a positive. Beyond that, I think the fact that we had a Dispersal Draft was also another important mechanism for teams to get themselves more competitive. We think the players that were taken in the first round, the one and only round of the draft, will contribute immediately. They were high-quality players. Players like Ruth Riley and Sheri Sam and Betty Lennox and others. From all reports from the teams, they are going to make immediate contributions to their respective new rosters. I think all of those are going to combine to make it a competitive year. I do hope that some of the mechanisms in place will give teams more flexibility and the opportunity to be more creative in terms of changing and building their rosters going forward.
Q: Do you think that applies in the business end too?
Ackerman: For sure. One of the benefits of the new model that we have is that our teams really do have more control. If there is an upside to be had they’re going to benefit from that. Down the road, if they elect to sell them they now have the opportunity to do that under the new model. They stand to benefit greatly from that, especially if they’ve worked along the way and built up their fan base, cultivated their relationships with their local partners and built up their local brand. So, the teams can very much benefit. The benefit of the new model is that teams go in knowing what’s involved. They have initial expenses, but they also have additional revenue opportunities. We are very heartened by the commitment and the enthusiasm that we’ve seen at the team level over the course of the last couple of months as our teams have very much taken to heart the opportunity presented, particularly on the revenue side. We think the league as a whole will greatly benefit from that.
Q: Have you decided to play through the Olympics?
Ackerman: I would call that probably the leading option at this point. No option is a good one, I’ll say that. But what probably is going to make the most sense for us is to allow the players involved to join up with their national teams to participate in the Olympics. We think there’s great benefits to have our players be part of that platform. If we can somehow lighten the game schedule while they are gone we think we can minimize the impact on their teams in terms of the games played when they are not there, and then we would still have the opportunity to conduct our playoffs when everyone is returned because they wouldn’t be scheduled to start … just like this year when we pushed the playoffs back into the latter part of August. Our players would be able to return in time to participate. That’s the parameter that we are looking at, but we’ll have more specifics in the upcoming months.
Q: Have you considered manipulating the geography of the league for more competitive balance?
Ackerman: I think not. Our parameters on alignment are pretty clear cut. We have a West that’s pretty clearly defined. We have an East. I think where there are some interesting discussions to be had is for the cities that are in the middle part of the country, the places like Houston. For example, in the (league’s) first year Houston was in the East, then we moved it to the West in the second year. Minneapolis is a city that sort of falls in the middle. I wouldn’t be surprised as the league evolve that consideration was given to potentially shifting that particular market depending on what new cities come in.
I’m reminded that the East actually had a better regular-season record than the West in the first two seasons of the WNBA. I guess that was at least in part because Houston was located in the East. But we’ve clearly had very competitive teams. I guess what I would say, finally, that every season’s different. I think this year more than any other we have a very profound level of parity in the league, the likes of which I haven’t seen before. The league and each team are very much strengthened.
The Dispersal Draft helped increase the level of talent across the board. The veteran players are better every year. We have some very strong newcomers. I think every team has a story to tell, particularly in a market like Indiana where by virtue of a trade we have an Olympian joining the roster of the Fever in Natalie Williams. We have a great young star in Tamika Catchings and a great coach in Nell Fortner. I think every team has its story. And I think this year pretty much anything can happen.
Q: Do you see the ownership model as a critical step for the league’s growth toward ultimately independence from the NBA? Is that the end goal?
Ackerman: No, I wouldn’t call that the endgame. I think the tie between the NBA and the WNBA is destined to continue. There was no attempt with the remodeling to disassociate the two or to create a path for disassociation, but I do think that with the new model and with the opening up of the league to non-NBA markets, we have the opportunity to have the best of both worlds. We have the support of the NBA at the league level, and in I think in the near-term and medium-term probably in the majority of our teams’ cities. But at the same time we can tap into some interest in women’s pro basketball that exists in other places. That certainly wouldn’t have been possible without the new model.
The economics of the new model are interesting because they do allow teams to have greater control over their destinies. If the team is doing well, if its selling tickets, if its cultivated strong relationships with its local partners, it can achieve financial goals that a non-NBA city that don’t entirely rely upon the NBA in the same kind of a way. But as I said the intent is to keep the leagues linked, for the WNBA to take advantage of the synergies and the promotional platforms that the NBA provides, particularly at this time of the year when there is a great deal of attention directed at the NBA Playoffs. At the same time to try and find markets where, yes, we would have a bit more independence from the NBA from the local level, but where we can still capitalize on the brand and association with it for the overall operation of the league.
Q: Is there a number as far as an ideal balance of NBA and non-NBA markets?
Ackerman: There is no fixed target. It’s not that scientific I would say. We’re going to be measured in our growth for sure. I think we are going to be very selective about the new markets, particularly the ones that do not have an NBA team because we know how difficult it is to start a sports franchise in a given city. We are going to want to make sure that we have the wherewithal that we need to make the WNBA work. But I think the most I could tell you without fixing it to a particular number that I see the majority of teams for the foreseeable future being associated with the NBA teams in those cities and there would be some gradual addition of non-NBA markets within the next two to five seasons.
Q: How confident are you that the markets you are in can succeed in the restructured model?
Ackerman: Very confident. We have in the teams that are with us good expressions of commitment at the ownership level. We have markets that we think are very receptive to women’s pro basketball. We have committed management teams who engage in a great deal of interactivity with the league office and with each other about their practices and about their sales strategies. We have some years of experience under our belt, which I think makes all of our team markets much more effective in terms of how they sell the WNBA and what’s going to be required to make sure that their respective franchises continue to grow and that their fan bases continue to grow. So, I think we are in very, very strong markets. We think we’ve accomplished a lot. We know there is still work to be done. But we think we are in the right places. But as I said before I think our challenge now will be to see if we can add cities where we also think the WNBA has a chance of being successful in the long-term.
Q: Do you have a schedule of when you envision somebody will begin to pay rights fees for the league’s television games?
Ackerman: This year we’re in the first year, with ABC and ESPN2, the Disney companies, a six-year agreement. The model is a revenue-sharing model for that agreement. The WNBA sells the advertising inventory on behalf of the enterprise and we share the revenues with the networks under that model. We’re evolving as a television property. We think we’ve made some real strides in terms of cultivating our viewership base, particularly among women and teens. Last year in particular, we saw some good gains in those particular areas. We have more reach than ever before. This year, our teams, in addition to the national schedule, televise games locally and as I mentioned at the top, we have international distribution. So we think the exposure is very good. Our hope very much is that our league will continue to evolve just like other leagues have evolved to the point where we can count on the kinds of rights fees that you see now in the other major league sports. That’s absolutely our goal, and I believe that we will get there. I can’t peg that to a particular year or time or point in our history
Q: Is there actually, after the selling of the advertising, a net on that yet? Somebody has to pay the production of the games too?
Ackerman: That’s part of the payment to the network. That comes out of the sale of the advertising inventory.
Q: To follow on the sale of the television, is there less promotion going on in the NBA games this year for the WNBA than in years past.
Ackerman: No, it’s not at all. We are promoting the WNBA with spots that have been running, really since the early part of March. In NBA games across all networks, there has been no lessening of the weight of these spots in those networks and that promotional run is going to continue straight through to the end of the NBA Finals. Our promotion is continuing as well. In NBA TV, NBA Inside Stuff, which is the NBA’s weekly magazine show that focuses on areas of off-court interest as well as game stories, all of those vehicles are continuing to be used as extensively as ever to promote the WNBA. And our teams have also become adept at working the WNBA into their local broadcasts and their various promotional activities as well.
Q: As the season approaches, is there any concerns at all with the Connecticut team being attached to a casino given the family-oriented marketing of the league?
Ackerman: No, we’re actually very comfortable with the arrangement. We’ve really been quite taken with the enthusiasm and the professionalism and the know-how of the staff at Mohegan Sun. When we announced the team, we made the point that we know there’s uneasiness at times between sports and gambling, but we don’t see this as one of those times. There are no sports books at any time that’s conducted at the Mohegan Sun. We have some very strict rules in both the NBA and WNBA concerning the co-promotion, meaning we don’t allow it between gaming operations and basketball promotions.
Quite honestly we see, in the Mohegan, a great family destination. It’s not just an arena; with the gaming operation, it has a large hotel. It has retail and restaurants, a spa, really a whole host of amenities that we think enhance it and we’re actually very happy to be included among the many, many sports and entertainment events that they put on now at the building; ranging from NBA basketball to an Arena Football League 2 team to the Harlem Globetrotters to tennis to boxing, you name it. It all seems to be there, so we’re very comfortable with the arrangement. We feel very confident that with the resources that are going to be put behind the Sun, that we have the chance of being very successful there -- like the UConn Huskies, who have been successful there and who we think we can complement and vice-versa in terms of giving this incredible women’s basketball market a year-round presence in the sport that the fans there seem to love so much.
Q: There are no slot machines in the concourse of the arena there, are there?
Ackerman: Absolutely not. It’s nothing. It’s completely sanitized.
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