The 2024 WNBA Season: A New Chapter for Women's Sports

Published: Wednesday, October 30, 2024

by Matthew Nazario

With over 28 seasons under its belt, none have been more important than the 2024 season of the WNBA. Capped off by one of the most exciting WNBA Finals in the league’s history between the Minnesota Lynx and the New York Liberty, with the Liberty winning their much-anticipated first WNBA Championship, this season marked an incredible turning point for the league. Before we dive into the importance of the 2024 season, there are two incredibly crucial parts to the story of the WNBA’s rise to popularity in the late 2010s and 2020s.

The WNBA has seen quite a lot of change since its founding in 1996, including many teams who no longer exist and/or rebranded and moved elsewhere, such as the Charlotte Sting, Miami Sol, Sacramento Monarchs and Houston Comets. Many served as sister teams to their NBA counterparts so that major cities would be able to have both an NBA and WNBA team. In 2018, it was the San Antonio Stars that rebranded and moved to the bright lights of Las Vegas, as the WNBA’s newest expansion team the Las Vegas Aces were born. As part of an attempt to bring professional sports into Las Vegas alongside the formerly Oakland Raiders (NFL) and another expansion team the Golden Knights (NHL), the Aces have since quickly become one of the premier franchises in the WNBA.

Anchored by now three-time MVP A’ja Wilson, the Aces have now won two championships (2022,2023) and are consistently at the top of the leaderboards currently in terms of game attendance and popularity. Bringing a new team not only to Las Vegas, but a team as successful as the Aces have been, was incredibly helpful in the pursuit of increased exposure for the WNBA. 

Sabrina Ionescu, star point guard for the New York Liberty, was a college phenom in her time playing for the Oregon Ducks. She became the only player in NCAA history to finish her college career with over 2000 points scored, 1000 rebounds and 1000 assists. Her incredible college career and the Kobe Bryant seal of approval made the 2020 WNBA Draft known as the “Sabrina Sweepstakes”, bringing mainstream attention to the WNBA that had not been seen in some time. She was drafted with the first overall pick by the New York Liberty and has since became a two-time All Star, signed a deal with Nike for her signature basketball shoes, as well as more recently becoming WNBA Champion alongside Liberty All-Stars Breanna Stewart and Jonquel Jones. 

Fast forward to the fall of 2023, the highly anticipated 2024 WNBA draft class included the arrivals of a new wave of college basketball phenoms. Caitlin Clark from Iowa, Cameron Brink from Stanford, and Angel Reese from LSU created a buzz not just within the professional league, but in the entire basketball fandom, something that had not been seen since the Sabrina Ionescu craze from a few years prior.

Clark was selected first overall by the Indiana Fever, Brink second overall by the Los Angeles Sparks, and Reese seventh overall by the Chicago Sky. Their preseason hype attracted the eyes of not just their supporters from their days in the collegiate level or pre-existing WNBA fans, but also those who relatively only watched NBA or had no prior experience with basketball.  

The 2024 season shattered many preexisting records from seasons prior. According to a WNBA Press Release following the conclusion of the regular season, merchandise sales (online and at the New York City NBA Store) were up 601% compared to 2023. The season was also the most viewed season of the WNBA on the ESPN family of networks, averaging 1.19 million viewers a game (170% increase compared to 2023) and had a total of 54 million different viewers across all their network deals in North America. Additionally, the WNBA sought to expand internationally this season; over 207 countries and territories were able to view the WNBA with multiple international network deals such as with TNT Sports in the United Kingdom and Videoland in Taiwan.

Attendance was also a major improvement in 2024, with the best total attendance the WNBA has had in 22 years (2,353,735). There were also 154 sellouts, and all of the league’s teams had attendance growth in double digits. Specifically, the Indiana Fever experienced a 319% increase in their attendance numbers in 2024, selling out 16 of their 20 home games. The 2024 edition of the WNBA All-Star game was the most viewed in the event’s history, and allowed millions to see the league’s best at play.

While many may think of the 2024 draft class as diverting all the spotlight away from the many women who were already stars in the league, I would argue that if these statistics showed anything, it was that this season allowed many of the newer fans to familiarize themselves not only with the rookies but with the abundance of talent already in the WNBA.

In such a historic season with attendance records and viewership through the roof, fans were able to experience the league’s best playing high quality basketball from various teams and stars. 
Capitalizing on their wave of momentum, the WNBA announced three new expansion teams to be added over the next two seasons. The Golden State Valkyrie will join the fray in 2025, as well as unnamed teams in Toronto and Portland set to be rolled out in time for the 2026 season; Toronto marks the first occasion the WNBA will have a team outside of the United States. 

Make no mistake, despite its incredible growth in popularity over the past few seasons, the WNBA has always had great amounts of talent and exciting action for those who tuned in. Let us not forget the pioneers of the WNBA that helped the product reach where it was now. The likes of Diana Taurasi, Sue Bird, Candace Parker, Brittney Griner, Maya Moore, Lisa Leslie, Tina Charles, Cynthia Cooper, Tamika Catchings, Sheryl Swoopes, the list can go on for quite a while.

However, as the league turns the page onto its next chapter of WNBA basketball, the future has never looked brighter. The 2024 draft class was able to live up to expectations, with Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese being at the forefront of the Rookie of the Year award race before it was won by Clark. Reese led the WNBA in rebounds per game (13.1) while Clark set the rookie records for three-pointers (122) and points (769), as well as having the first two triple-doubles ever by a rookie. Although Cameron Brink’s season was cut relatively short due to injury, one can only assume she will return as motivated as ever in 2025 to make strides in the center position.  

Arike Ogunbowale, point guard for the Dallas Wings, had yet another incredible offensive season to put on her resume. The young point guard finished second in the WNBA in scoring (22.2 ppg) and tied the single game WNBA record for most three-pointers made, with nine in a game versus the Indiana Fever on September 1st. The Minnesota Lynx were perhaps a foul-call short of winning their fifth WNBA Championship, with the MVP-like season of Napheesa Collier giving a glimpse of what is sure to be a future of much success for the Lynx.  

Young stars such as Satou Sabally (Wings), Aliyah Boston (Fever), NaLyssa Smith (Fever), Rickea Jackson (Sparks) and Rhyne Howard (Mystics) provided fans with high-quality play that they can expect from them for years to come. The upper echelon of the WNBA is filled to the brim with star power and as stacked as ever. The Liberty can expect much competition from the likes of the Aces, Lynx, Sun, Storm and the up-and-coming Fever in their quest for another championship in 2025. 

The 2024 WNBA season showed just how successful women’s sports could be at a major level if treated with proper care and investment. It was a milestone not only for women’s basketball, but for women’s sports in its entirety. The amount of attention, media coverage, love and support the league received in 2024 is a testament to how far the league has come since its inception. While many may find it difficult to follow up on such an incredible season, I have a feeling that the best has yet to come. 

Matthew Nazario can be reached at matthew.nazario@student.shu.edu. 

 

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