Sports
A'ja Wilson: Private travel is essential for WNBA future success – USA TODAY
The reigning champions Las Vegas Aces edged past the New York Liberty for a 99-82 win to take Game 1 of the 2023 WNBA Finals. The Aces lead the best-of-5 series 1-0.
The New York Liberty will play against the Las Vegas Aces in Game 2 of the WNBA Finals to a sold-out Michelob ULTRA Arena that seats 12,000 fans. A’ja Wilson, the Aces’ forward and Defensive Player of the Year, anticipates an intense game and is excited about the fan engagement.
“I wasn’t surprised that it was sold out,” Wilson said on Sports Seriously. “Our fans love us and love the game because it gives people the chance to come and have fun while watching great basketball.”
Wilson said this is a WNBA final that will showcase elite basketball that all fans could enjoy.
The Las Vegas Aces lead the WNBA in home attendance this season, with an average of 9,551 fans, according to the Sports Business Journal.
Wilson believes that the top priority for the WNBA should be expansion. Wilson said it will create more job opportunities for players who can play at the highest level and could lead to better travel arrangements for the existing teams.
The WNBA has announced that a new expansion team will join the league in 2025. This team will be based in the San Francisco Bay Area and will be owned and managed by Joe Lacob, the Co-Executive Chairman and CEO of the Warriors, and Peter Guber, Co-Executive Chairman. The ownership group of the Warriors committed to paying a record $50 million expansion fee for the WNBA franchise over 10 years, according to Sportico.
The team will play their home games at the Chase Center in San Francisco. Despite not having a team name or any players, in the first five hours of announcing the team, the expansion team received 2,000 deposits for season tickets.
This marks the first expansion of the WNBA since 2008, when it added the Atlanta Dream to the league.
“I am happy we are expanding and I am happy there is ownership behind the expansion that is willing to work,” Wilson said.
Basketball:WNBA set to announce expansion team in San Francisco Bay Area
Wilson also shared her thoughts on what she considers another top focus for the league should be better travel accommodations for the WNBA teams.
There has been much discussion about travel arrangements in the WNBA following an incident in June 2023 at Dallas Fort Worth International Airport where Brittney Griner was harassed before boarding a flight with the Mercury team. Griner raised the debate on providing charter airplanes for WNBA teams, and Wilson reiterated the discussion.
Wilson expressed discomfort with being seated next to strangers on flights to away WNBA games and expected to perform at their best so private travel is essential for the player’s overall safety.
