The first time a bright green sex toy was hurled onto a WNBA court last week in Atlanta, players mostly laughed it off and some posted social media jokes. When it happened a few days later and interrupted a game in Chicago, Sky center Elizabeth Williams called it “super disrespectful.” After a third incident during a Sparks-Fever game on Tuesday, L.A. guard Kelsey Plum kicked the object off the court.
It’s natural for players to wonder how they should react to these bizarre, brazen and potentially embarrassing and dangerous incidents. Whatever the purpose behind this trend — a coordinated effort or one-offs by attention-seekers — it’s not incumbent on the players to laugh along with this supposed joke. Because these are not just silly pranks.
MLB, MLS and preseason NFL games are ongoing. But this is only happening at WNBA games? … Interesting.
The WNBA has grown exponentially in the last two seasons — record attendance, climbing television viewership and massive financial investments. The league and its star players are now regarded as mainstream, included in the national sports conversation like never before.
But these women are still the subject of an occasional punchline. While players are negotiating for higher salaries, they’re still fighting for their reputations to be respected as elite professional athletes. They have now had to be graceful and coolly navigate being unfairly thrust into an obscene moment.
