Friday Dump 🥟 - WNBA 2025 plan, The Clipper Wall, Soto's upcoming deal

Friday Dump 🥟 for the soul 

Each Friday, we’ll breakdown 3 sports business stories that have caught our eye throughout the week. They will be assembled in the following format:

🔴 - Stories that make us stop, think, and question.

🟡 - Stories with a hint of risk and unpredictability.

🟢 - Stories that make us feel good to go and empowered.

Move over chicken soup, it’s our time.

🔴 The WNBA wraps up an unforgettable year. The New York Liberty are officially WNBA champions and great timing too as it’s no secret the league had its most successful season in history. We could thank the new media rights deal, we could thank the increase in development and competition within the league, we could even thank Caitlin Clark. All of these are credible reasons as to why the WNBA has soared. But right now, we’ll stick to the business at hand because even though there are plenty of people to thank and plenty of time to reminisce on the good times, tough decisions are ahead for this growing league.

• For starters, viewership is up. The league hadn’t drawn a million viewers to a game since 2008. Yeah lol, it hit that mark 22 times this regular season alone.

• But what’s interesting to note is the morning after the Liberty won the WNBA Finals, the Women’s National Basketball Players’ Association opted out of its collective bargaining agreement.

  • The biggest question looming over negotiations is whether the players’ portion of revenue will increase.

  • Unlike men’s leagues that evenly split league revenue with owners, only about 9% of it trickles down to players in the WNBA.

  • The new deal, which triples the amount of money coming in, will definitely increase salaries, but it’s all about increasing that percentage for the players.

• Another major question is if this new media rights deal will increase the likelihood of current owners and teams upgrading their stadiums and facilities.

  • Commissioner Cathy Engelbert already instituted charter flights for every game at the start of the year. But one of the biggest issues from current WNBA players is not just their salaries, but the overall discrepancy in facility treatment between them and NBA players.

    • Teams like the Dallas Wings and L.A. Sparks still practice at college campuses, while the Chicago Sky and Connecticut Sun are in shared public spaces.

      • The Sun are owned by the Mohegan Tribe and practice in a facility where members of the tribe get first priority, which has led to shared-use issues over the years.

🟡 New LA home for the little brother Clippers. It’s been a long 37 months for the current Los Angeles Clippers owner and from Microsoft CEO, Steve Ballmer. Just over 3 years ago, the rambunctious billionaire broke ground in Inglewood, CA and spent ~$2B for his Clippers to have a place they can call their own…instead of using the Los Angeles Lakers’ Crypto.com Arena for the last 25 years. But what’s most fascinating about this stadium isn’t the fact the Clippers don’t have to share anymore. It’s the interesting architecture and fun bells and whistles Ballmer decided to implement and create more of a “vibe” for the fan (whatever helps living in a Laker town I guess lol).

• One cool part about the stadium is the infamous “Wall”.

  • The Wall is a steep, 51-row multiple section of seats behind the basket adjacent to the visitor’s bench that’s unlike anything in any other professional hoops arena.

  • The idea is for 300 of the most passionate Clippers fans to bring energy for the entire game — almost like bringing a college basketball atmosphere to an NBA game.

    • Now there are stipulations to these seats…

      • They’re only for Clippers fans.

      • No one can wear an opposing team jersey.

      • The cost is $1,299 for the 41 home games (or $32 per game). Which is very inexpensive, especially for LA. But if you want these seats, you got to be ready to be loud the entire game which includes distracting opposing players, who are shooting at the basket directly in front of the section in the second half.

      • Apparently, Ballmer has even placed sensors in seats throughout the building and says he will give prizes for those who cheer the loudest.

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🟢 Juan Soto’s pinstripes are on the line. Has anyone else heard that the New York Yankees are back in the World Series? We definitely haven’t 😉. But one player who’s more ecstatic than the rest isn’t just due to the fact he could help bring the Big Apple’s first World Series title since 2009, it’s because he has the chance to get close to Ohtani money. But that wouldn’t be a big deal for the most popular franchise in the MLB…right?

• For decades the Yankees have been known as the big-time spenders within baseball. Why? Because you got to spend money to make money (this is a fortune cookie newsletter now). And former owner George Steinbrenner knew that better than anyone.

  • Since their title in 2009, the Yankees have paid nearly $3.5B in total player payroll — ranking among the league’s top spenders, including a $309M payroll this year that ranked second only to the New York Mets.

• As the Yankees look to matchup vs. the Los Angeles Dodgers in Game 1 tonight, it’s impossible not to wonder if Soto could surpass Ohtani’s 10-year, $700M contract…if he’s a massive contributor to the Yankees winning their 28th World Series title.

  • Initial projections of a multiyear deal beginning at $500M may soon start at $600M, or more.

  • Even fans and fellow players are getting involved in the lobbying efforts to resign Soto.