It’s not unusual for comments from our man Shaq to stir things up in the sports world. It’s happened many times in the past, and will no doubt happen again in the future. If you’ve been following the ShaqFu Radio blog lately (and we know you do!) you know that O’Neal’s latest idea to make the WNBA a more exciting product to watch is more than a little controversial. That idea: Lower the rims.
Shaq has been talking about his lower-rim idea for some time, but he put it out recently again on Angel Reese’s “Unapologetically Angel” podcast. Not only did Reese not like the idea from the guy she calls an “uncle” to her, she shot back, “I hate when men say that.”
Now, since that podcast dropped, many others have weighed in on the idea, as well as other suggestions that might make the ladies game even more exciting and interesting to watch. This year, with star players like Reese, Caitlin Clark and others joining “the W,” there’s been a lot more attention on the league, and a lot more money coming in, too.
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Now, to be clear, O’Neal’s suggestion to lower the rim for the ladies’ game would probably not even be visible to fans in the arenas or watching on TV. On Reese’s podcast, Shaq said, “I’m not saying to lower it to 9 ‘5”, but just a little bit, like 9’ 9″. How much of a difference would that make? Hard to say. Shaq liked the lower-rim idea to increase the possibility of seeing the occasional slam-dunk.
Others have been talking about similar ideas for a while. On another sports podcast, former college (football) coach Jason Brown said the WNBA should go even farther, saying, “Here’s the bottom line then, lower the rim and make it even a smaller ball and I’ve been saying this.” That idea did not sit well with Brown’s co-host Darnell Smith, who put it simply: “The ball is already small as hell.”
But Brown is sticking to his call for bigger changes, saying they “need to happen” to keep the league afloat. He talked about how WNBA players regularly go to other countries in the US off-season to sustain their careers. Brown believes making the ladies game more exciting – which he thinks lowering the rims will do – will help grow the game and the revenues it produces for teams and players alike.
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As for the money, that’s a good point. Reese has talked openly on her podcast about how her WNBA salary “doesn’t cover her bills.” She talked about how it doesn’t even cover her monthly rent payment. Sidenote: Reese has been hired by Shaq to help out with the rebranding effort at Reebok. She’s got her own line of clothing and other accessories in the works. No doubt that salary will boost her standard of living!
Talking about the WNBA on a recent TNT appearance, Shaq continued to push his lower-the-rim idea, citing the difference in net height in beach volleyball as a good example of a needed “difference” between the mens’ and womens’ games. “So, in beach volleyball, the women’s net is maybe half a inch lower. You think if we just lowered the rim so y’all can dunk like we dunk, that would give y’all more oomph than you already have.”
Former WNBA star Candace Parker – now a TV commentator as well – is also against the idea. As for dunks, she says more will come over time, as the woman players get better and better. Just for the record, the Sports Business Journal says the WNBA has 38 dunks in the complete history of the league. Star Brittney Griner has had 27 of them!
So is the change needed? Hard to say. If you’re just looking for upping the TV ratings, that’s already happening. The Wall Street Journal reported that viewership among young girls was up a whopping 181% on ESPN for the season. That’s a lot of new eyeballs!