Don’t Let a Fairy Tale End in a Disaster, WNBA

by Ernie McCray

The other night
I saw a video
of a cheap shot
laid on Caitlin Clark
that was called a foul
but it seemed more like a mugging
to me,
way-way-way
unnecessary.
I mean, come on, you guys,
if she drives into the paint
or jockeys for a position
to grab a rebound,
or is trying, among other things,
to do something like set a screen,
she’s fair game for a bump or two,
as that’s part of the game,
but what I happened to see
was simply
a crying shame.

What’s wrong with y’all in the WNBA?
Don’t you realize
you are living a fairy tale
where once upon a time
the superstars
in your past,
despite their mythical status
on a basketball court,
played the game mostly unseen
and all who played
would unashamedly dream
of a day when
fieldhouses would be sold-out
and higher TV ratings
would come about,
a day when players would make
the kind of money
that could keep them from having
to play in the European leagues
to make ends meet,
a day when lucrative commercials
and business opportunities
would be within reach,
and they, like those in the NBA,
the league in which the men play,
would have the world at their feet.

And it seemed that day would never become a reality
because the world was blind to their athletic artistry
unless someone somehow
had the magic key
that could make folks want to see them do their thing,
and then suddenly
out of nowhere, it seems,
Caitlin Clark arrives on the scene
and captures the sports-world’s attention
pretty much like no one has ever seen,
fueling hope
that all the dreams that had been dreamt
could come true
and then lo and behold,
contrary to the endings of folk tales,
this save-the-day Princess Charming
of the hardwoods
is blindsided
and knocked down
on national television before well over a million viewers,
many of them new fans,
in a gymnasium,
under lights as bright as they can be,
filled to the brim.
Please don’t let the spotlight dim
and lay waste to your dreams of better days
for a more prosperous WNBA
because Caitlin brought this gift to you
with unbelievable passion
and indefatigable joy.

Embrace that spirit
as this story needs to end
not in a disaster
but with everybody
living happily ever after.

Seize the moment WNBA.