Jeff Walz, Angel McCoughtry Advocating for WNBA to Louisville
LOUISVILLE, Ky. - Over the last decade and a half, the city of Louisville has blossomed into one of the premier markets for women's college basketball.
This past season, the Cardinals drew 8,211 fans per regular season game, which not only lead the ACC, but also ranked fourth in the nation. It marked the 12th consecutive season that UofL has lead the ACC and ranked in the top five nationally in women's college basketball attendance.
Many believe that the interest in the sport can make a seamless transition to the professional level, including Louisville women's basketball head coach Jeff Walz and former Cardinals All-American Angel McCoughtry.
Speaking to the media after the unveiling of McCoughtry's court in Shively Park, both Walz and McCoughtry advocated for the WNBA to establish a franchise in Louisville.
"I think it's something that definitely could be talked about and considered," Walz said. "There's just a lot of pieces that go in to it, but I do think the support that our city shows for our program, and just all of our women's sports in general here, would make this a viable option if they decided to expand."
WNBA expansion has been a hot-button topic over the last few years, and was recently re-ignited over the past few months. With only 12 teams currently in the league, creating a maximum of 144 total roster spots, many talented players find themselves on the chopping block simply due to roster restrictions than their own playing ability.
In any interview with The Athletic earlier this month, WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert said that she is hoping to "identify one or two cities for an expansion franchise" by the end of the year, and that the new teams could start play as early as the 2024 season.
"We're ready for expansion," McCoughtry said. "It's time, we're eager. I know they said by 2024, so I'm hoping we submit - the city of Louisville - so we can get it. Who do I need to talk to so we can submit Louisville?"
Engelbert said that the WNBA has trimmed their list of potential cities down to 10 to 12 cities, and will run each city through 25 data points within five categories: demographics, psychographics, sports benchmarks, viewership and fan data. The WNBA hasn't expanded since the Atlanta Dream were established in 2008.
There is precedent for the WNBA establishing a franchise due to the popularity of the college game in a market. The Orlando Miracle relocated to Uncasville, Conn. in 2003, then rebranded as the Connecticut Sun in part due to the popularity of women's college basketball in the state, stemming from the success of the UConn Huskies.
While Louisville hasn't been as successful as UConn has - quite frankly, no one has - Walz has turned UofL into a national powerhouse in his tenure. He has taken the Cardinals to four Final Fours and two national title game appearances in 2009 and 2013 - the former of which was led by McCoughtry.
Walz also isn't concerned that a potential WNBA franchise would draw fans away from Louisville's games, mainly because the WNBA plays their games entirely during the summer and early fall.
"It's different seasons," he said. "We aren't going to overlap at all, so it's not going to impact people coming out to our games if they're going to go to a WNBA game."
According to The Athletic, the WNBA is "operating under the premise" that an expansion fee would be worth between $15-20 million.
(Photo of Jeff Walz: Kirby Lee - USA TODAY Sports)
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