Possible WNBA Expansion

As the WNBA embarks on its 27th season, the league is thriving with 12 solid franchises.  It has firmly established itself as the strongest professional women's basketball league in the world, and this season will be playing a 40-game schedule for the first time.  They seem to be comfortable with 12 teams, but maybe it's time to think about expanding.

Since there are only 12 teams in the league, that means there are only 144 players on WNBA rosters at any given time.  Even taking injuries, pregnancies/maternity leaves, and additional players who may fill roster spots during the course of the season into account, that's still less than 200.  Which also includes a number of international players.  That's far fewer than are capable of playing in the WNBA.

In the early days of the WNBA, the league overexpanded.  There's no denying that.  It went from eight to 10 to 12 to 16 over the first four seasons.  That lasted two years before the Miami Sol and Portland Fire were contracted in 2002.  Since then, four original franchises have folded, while Chicago and Atlanta joined.  The WNBA has held steady at 12 teams, though, since the Sacramento Monarchs folded after the 2009 season.  That was 14 years ago!

All of the WNBA teams that have folded did so for financial reasons, so it's understandable why the league might be hesitant to expand again.  There may also be some concern about overexpanding again.  However, there's a big difference between now and 2002 (when the WNBA originally went to 16) and even 2010 (when they settled on the current number of 12).

When the WNBA first started, they got a little too ambitious for their own good.  That's a mistake I think they realize now.  They went from zero teams to eight to 16 over the course of five years, when they weren't established yet.  Now, they've got a quarter century of history on their side, and a whole generation of players who grew up watching the WNBA.  So, going beyond the 12 current teams wouldn't be overzealous.  It would be natural growth for a successful league.

Also consider the fact that when the WNBA started, all eight of its franchises were "sister" teams to NBA squads, even playing in the same arena.  They eventually went away from that model and to outside ownership groups.  There are currently three WNBA teams (Connecticut, Las Vegas and Seattle) that play in markets without an NBA team, and only a handful of the other nine share their arena with their NBA counterpart.  So, the WNBA has shown that it's beyond capable of standing on its own.

There are also plenty of markets that would make great WNBA homes.  The league was heartbroken when the Houston Comets, winners of the first four WNBA championships, folded.  How great would it be if they were revived?  (Especially since it looks like the Coyotes are probably moving to Houston.)  Likewise, the Sacramento Monarchs only folded because they couldn't find an owner.  It wasn't because of a lack of fan support.

Should the right owner emerge, it would definitely be worth trying again in Houston or Sacramento.  The other cities that have had WNBA teams in the past, however, would seem unlikely to be considered.  Especially when there are two current franchises that have relocated twice (from Utah to San Antonio to Las Vegas and from Detroit to Tulsa to Dallas).  If Houston or Sacramento didn't work out for whatever reason, though, there are plenty of NBA markets that I'm sure would welcome a WNBA team, as well.

Just off the top of my head, there are three that could be worth exploring.  The first is the Bay Area.  They may not want another team on the West Coast, when they've already got LA, Seattle, Phoenix and Las Vegas.  Or, since California's plenty big enough to have a second team, a Bay Area team could be exactly what they're looking for.  The only issue could be finding an appropriate-sized venue, since the Warriors' shiny new arena is probably a no-go.  They could play in San Jose at the Sharks' arena perhaps?

Then there's Denver.  If you look at a map of WNBA franchise locations, there's a big gap in the middle.  A team in Denver would take care of that.  It would also bring the WNBA back to a part of the country that hasn't had a team since the Utah Starzz moved to San Antonio after the 2002 season.  Philadelphia, meanwhile, would have built in rivals along the I-95 corridor in the New York Liberty and Washington Mystics.

I can also foresee taking advantage of LSU's popularity and placing a team in New Orleans.  I'm not sure they'd be able to sustain a team in that market, though.  It's kind of surprising that the WNBA has never tried Boston, but they've got New England covered with the Connecticut Sun, who've been around for a while and have that fanbase you'd be siphoning from.  Likewise, would they even consider extending the league's footprint into Canada and doing a team in Toronto?

Or, they could go to a non-NBA market, of which there's one very intriguing possibility.  Nashville.  I'm actually shocked the WNBA has never sought to capitalize on the University of Tennessee's popularity by placing a team in Nashville, which would obviously be able to take advantage of that Lady Vol fanbase.  To me, that's a massive missed opportunity.  And one that would be a no-brainer should the WNBA look to enter a new market.  Nashville makes way too much sense for the WNBA to have never even tried it.

The time is right for the WNBA to expand.  I'm not advocating going overboard like MLS, which just added its 30th team in San Diego.  But a two-team expansion would make sense and be sustainable.  Then, if the 14-team league works, maybe you consider adding two more a few years later and getting back to 16.  Anything beyond that would be too much, though.  I think even 16 is pushing it, but 14 seems just right.  Not to mention the fact it would add 24 jobs.  There are enough quality players not currently playing in the WNBA that adding 24 wouldn't water down the product.

Adding two teams to the WNBA would be good for all involved.  As for where those two teams should be, I'd revive the Houston Comets and try somewhere new.  I'm going to Nashville (and calling the team the "Bluebirds," after the legendary Bluebird Cafe).