is it really that hard to imagine a woman playing in the NBA?

[wjb3000]

I can't wrap my mind around this ever happening.

Will a woman ever play in the NFL? Will a woman ever play in the NHL? Will a woman ever play in the MLB?

No.

So why should the NBA even open the idea of a woman playing in the league? That is what the WNBA is for. Many people would probably call this "sexist" and "segregation", but this isn't about that; it's about the game. Period. The difference between the quality of the NBA and the WNBA is very apparent, and it boils down to the physical abilities and differences between males and females.

I'll go out on a limb and say this: it won't happen in 10 years; it won't happen ever.

Although I agree that it is highly unlikely that a woman will play professionally in any of the major sports in the near future.  Remember, Manon Rheaume actually played with the Tampa Bay Lightning for a very short while as a goalie.  I don't know hockey well enough to know if she was actually talented enough to play in the NHL, or whether this was a gimmick, but one thing is for sure...it happened.

http://www.nytimes.com/1992/09/25/sports/sports-people-hockey-praise-for-female-goalie.html

[kozlodoev]

I can't believe this is being seriously discussed, let alone in 2 different threads.

All this stuff won't happen for the same reason for which a man will never play in the WNBA.

[Eja117]

I can see one other thing maybe happening.

I can see something like a Pat Summit or that Geno at UCONN getting a coaching job in the NBA.

He sees his pgs suck and making cruddy decisions and he's just like "You suck. You have no idea how to play basketball. I'm getting a player that knows how to play"

Or maybe there's a rash of injuries

The next week Diana Taurasi or whoever shows up on a ten day contract.  Maybe she doesn't get into a game, but maybe she practices with them a lot or something. Player coach or something.

A woman might sorta join the league through the back door.

I could also see the outside chance of the league just making a weird rule like "Every team must have one woman and she must get 10 mins a game".  Leagues are known to do stuff like that. It could happen in college first.  Stern may be thinking about it and putting stuff out there like the all-star game 2 on 2s to see if he can make money

[fairweatherfan]

All this stuff won't happen for the same reason for which a man will never play in the WNBA.

There's a rule in the NBA expressly forbidding women to play? 

Like last time, it's not impossible for a woman to play, but it is very hard to imagine.  The gap in athleticism is much larger than people think.  Story time:  when I was in grad school our men's rugby team scrimmaged with the women's undergrads.  They were a perpetual Final Four team, and we were mostly somewhat out-of-shape older guys without a lot of experience.  We gave them 7 of our players (a mix of bench guys and starters) and played 2-hand touch so strength wouldn't be a factor.  Even 15 on 22, we shut them out and they only crossed midfield once.  We simply ran circles around them, and they were a dominant team.  It's a low level example but the same idea. 

If a woman does play I'd agree it'll probably either be a baseball pitcher, a hockey goalie, or a football kicker.  Basketball requires too much versatility and athleticism for all but a transcendent female athlete to stand a chance.

[screwedupmaniac]

All this stuff won't happen for the same reason for which a man will never play in the WNBA.

You just gave me a great idea...if Stern is opening the door for female athletes in the NBA, then does this mean that male basketball players who aren't good enough for the NBA can play in the WNBA?

I mean, not that any dude would ever WANT to play in the WNBA...but if the pay is good...

[GreenFaith1819]

Very Good Discussion, but I feel like playing devil's advocate today:

So Tamika Catchings, Candace Parker, Lisa Leslie, or Diana Taurasi aren't athletic?

I know that the argument could be made with my above statement that they are tall and that gives them an advantage in the WNBA.....but T Catchings and Diana Taurasi aren't that tall.

I know that Lisa Leslie is retired, so I'll take her out of the conversation.

The game of basketball is more than just athleticism. Yes I'll admit that it certainly helps, but basketball IQ is important in this discussion as well.

I think that T Catchings and D Taurasi would be VERY dangerous as NBA PGs, IMO. Yes the physical differences would be a challenge I'll admit, but then look at our PG Rajon Rondo...he mixes it up inside from time to time and he knows where to go to get his rebounds, and he is the smallest guy on the floor most of the time.

Rajon gets more rebounds as a PG than most PGs because of his speed and athleticism, but his IQ plays into this as well, IMO.

And the main reason why I became a Celtics Fan back in 1981 was because of some un-athletic kid named Larry Bird...when I first started watching Basketball way back then I was intrigued by his determination, smarts, hustle and attitude and how these traits allowed him to be one of the best of all time, against players that were taller and faster than him.

One player to watch out for is Britney Griner from Baylor..I read a story in the local paper here about her nearly getting a triple double..she had 21 pts, 12 rebounds and 8 blocks a few weeks ago. She is 6'8". I haven't seen her play yet, but if she is doing this as a Freshman then sometimes you just have to wonder.......

I don't have any girls (I have two boys), but if I did have a daughter I couldn't imagine telling her that she couldn't play in the NBA because of this or that. That's just me. I really believe this will happen sooner than we think...

[Celtics17]

Ha ha, I am not tring to be a male chauvanist here but let's get real. It is very hard to imagine a woman playing in the best basketball league in the world! I had a friend who told me one time that he had played high school ball but was just a so so player. Anyway, his YMCA buddies played one of the Missouri State ladies teams (they are better then you might think). I kind of think it was the group that went to the final four but cant remember for sure. Anyway, he said they were beating them so bad at half time the girls just quit. I'll bet you there are some 8th grade boys teams that could beat the best women's teams in the country. Maybe not but once you get into high school I will guarantee there are some freshman boys teams who could. Ha ha ha ha, women playing pro basketball in the world's best league.

[Fafnir]

So Tamika Catchings, Candace Parker, Lisa Leslie, or Diana Taurasi aren't athletic?

Compared to NBA atheltes, not really. Parker is 6'5" and a great post player in the woman's game. But in the NBA she'd be trying to guard Ben Gordon, Ray Allen, Andre Iguodala, Kobe Bryant, etc...

They're all quicker, more agile, and likely stronger than she is.

[Eja117]

All this stuff won't happen for the same reason for which a man will never play in the WNBA.

There's a rule in the NBA expressly forbidding women to play? 

Like last time, it's not impossible for a woman to play, but it is very hard to imagine.  The gap in athleticism is much larger than people think.  Story time:  when I was in grad school our men's rugby team scrimmaged with the women's undergrads.  They were a perpetual Final Four team, and we were mostly somewhat out-of-shape older guys without a lot of experience.  We gave them 7 of our players (a mix of bench guys and starters) and played 2-hand touch so strength wouldn't be a factor.  Even 15 on 22, we shut them out and they only crossed midfield once.  We simply ran circles around them, and they were a dominant team.  It's a low level example but the same idea. 

If a woman does play I'd agree it'll probably either be a baseball pitcher, a hockey goalie, or a football kicker.  Basketball requires too much versatility and athleticism for all but a transcendent female athlete to stand a chance.

While that's an interesting story it's kind of apples and oranges.  The comparison is trying to take the best player from that team, put her on yours, and see if she can make a contribution or beat out the worst guy. Granted you weren't a good team, so that's apples and oranges too, but still

[CDawg834]

I can't wrap my mind around this ever happening.

Will a woman ever play in the NFL? Will a woman ever play in the NHL? Will a woman ever play in the MLB?

No.

So why should the NBA even open the idea of a woman playing in the league? That is what the WNBA is for. Many people would probably call this "sexist" and "segregation", but this isn't about that; it's about the game. Period. The difference between the quality of the NBA and the WNBA is very apparent, and it boils down to the physical abilities and differences between males and females.

I'll go out on a limb and say this: it won't happen in 10 years; it won't happen ever.

Although I agree that it is highly unlikely that a woman will play professionally in any of the major sports in the near future.  Remember, Manon Rheaume actually played with the Tampa Bay Lightning for a very short while as a goalie.  I don't know hockey well enough to know if she was actually talented enough to play in the NHL, or whether this was a gimmick, but one thing is for sure...it happened.

http://www.nytimes.com/1992/09/25/sports/sports-people-hockey-praise-for-female-goalie.html

I got this from Wikipedia, so take it for what it's worth, but it sounds like the Lightning basically flat-out said it was in part a publicity stunt.  And she only appeared in an exhibition game, never a regular season game.

Unless a woman came along who was an absolutely freak of nature athletically, I am not sure if she could really contribute to an NBA team.  If a woman does make it to the NBA, I would hope it is due to her ability, and not for the "freak show" factor or to generate publicity.  Not saying a woman SHOULDN'T pay in the NBA, it's just a question of whether or not she is physically able to compete.  

I disagree with the mentality that if anyone says no, then they are sexist.  If someone says a woman shouldn't play in the NBA just because they are a woman, then the argument of sexism would apply.  But I think the question here is not whether they should, but whether they could.

In a way, I think it is similar to the argument of if a team from the 50s played against a current team, who would win?  I think due to sheer atleticism alone, the current teams would almost always win, even if they aren't better fundamental basketball players.  But that's a different debate, and I am sure plenty would disagree with me.

[the_Bird]

It would be interesting to see an elite-level WNBA player get dropping into the D-League for a few weeks to get a good sense of comparative athleticism, but that'll never happen; if she fails, it'd be a huge blow to the WNBA.

The NBA/quasi-NBA player who comes to mind that might be comparable to an elite WBNA guard might be Dan Dickau.  Smart player, great shooter, but so inathletic relative to other NBA players that he couldn't play in the league.  Basketball IQ is important, but there's a simple, basic level of athleticism that you need for it to even be relevant.

So the question is - are the WBNA players being mentioned more athletic than Dan Dickau?

[Eja117]

This is just me, but i think seeing as how many of our favorite players in Boston are guys that were severely underrated (Bird, Flutie, Brady, Bruschi) cause they didn't fit the mold Boston is a bit more predisposed to discussing this and not underrating a girl with grit and personality like a Taurasi that is also from our neck of the woods.

[Celtic]

Never gonna happen. The WNBA is light years behind the NBA, the only way a female player would come into the league is if it was some part of a publicity stunt.

The fact of the matter is that you can take the best female player in the world and there will always be a male college/d league player that is far more deserving.

[Kiorrik]

Won't really happen. They wouldn't be as successful in the NBA as in the WNBA.

There is a reason why men are competing separately. Have a look at athletics, sports like distance jumping, spear throwing, marathons and check the times/distances on those sports, women compared to men.

If at all, we are far, far away from this ever happening.

And this has nothing to do with sexism. Nothing at all.

[Eja117]

There's something else people aren't taking into account.

Women around the world getting to play more. In some countries they have women's sports, not so much in others.

The men have been beaten internationally in the Olympics. The American women don't get beat as much (I don't think)

They don't have Title 9 in other countries so much.

Once 700million Chinese women start playing ball the WNBA will be able to draw talent internationally like the NBA can and it will make a difference