Sports Takes Sure To Be Wrong…Women’s hoops revolution

The biggest potential winner in the upcoming NCAA Women’s Basketball Tournament won’t have a player or a team on the court, but it figures to score big time.

It won’t have anything to do with one of the many tournament venues, but its attendance figures to have the same great crowds.

Barring some kind of catastrophic injury, scoring machine Caitlin Clark of Iowa and “Bayou Barbie” Angel Reese, who figure to play great as always in the NCAA tournament, have the WNBA on the verge of a basketball jumpstart not seen in pro basketball since Larry Bird and Magic Johnson entered the NBA in 1979.

Both players figure to be top-10 picks in the WNBA draft in New York City on April 15. Clark figures to be the first pick and Reese projects to be another top-10 selection.

Why are these two players so special in the draft? Why not top players like Cameron Brink of Stanford and Paige Bueckers of UCONN?

The answer is simple: Clark and Reese have star power.

Clark and Reese have the ability to generate the type of buzz that the WNBA, which annually languishes in doldrums of being a summer sport sandwiched between the NFL and NBA seasons, desperately needs.

It’s true that the WNBA is coming off of a strong season in terms of television viewing. The league reached more than 36 million unique viewers across all national networks, its highest since 2008 and up 27 percent from 2022.

But Clark and Reese can give it a rocket boost, and their rivalry that stems from last year’s national championship “put a ring on it” controversy only adds to the fact.

(For what it is worth, Bird and Magic also generated a national buzz when they played in the NCAA championship game for Indiana State and Michigan State, respectively.)

Clark, in passing LSU’s Pete Maravich for the NCAA all-time basketball scoring record, has led women’s basketball to surpass men’s basketball in average viewership from 981,000 to 946,000 on Fox this season. That’s a 48 percent increase and a 60 percent increase across national networks.

The “Bayou Barbie” is one of the most charismatic and talented players in basketball. Reese led LSU to the national championship last year. Her ability to back up her boastful play with outstanding games and her strong leadership has made LSU one of the most talked about teams in the nation.

Reese has transformed LSU women’s basketball into the hottest ticket in Baton Rouge the last two years.

Clark and Reese have the ability to make the WNBA Must-See TV on a nightly basis.

Here are some more “Sports Takes Sure To Be Wrong (Although We Know The Majority Of These Will Be Right).”

For what it is worth, I covered the Atlanta Dream for the Atlanta Journal-Constitution in 2010 and it was one of the most fun seasons I’ve ever had as a sportswriter. The Dream lost to the Seattle Storm 3-0 in the championship series, but it was a blast watching the Dream come together after finishing the regular season fourth in the Eastern Conference.

Remember, not to get too carried away with the arm-strength performances of the quarterbacks in the recent NFL Scouting Combine. For every quarterback who threw the ball more than 60 yards in the workout, remember that in a game that likely won’t happen because they likely won’t have the kind of time to make that pass against a hard-charging defense. The name Zach Wilson and his workout should come to mind immediately.

The two greatest quarterbacks of all time, Joe Montana and Tom Brady, didn’t exactly light it up in their postseason workouts.

I think the Saints should try to get one of the seven top-flight free-agent available this offseason. Alvin Kamara. as great as he is, operates best as a change-of-pace running back instead of the main running back. Another great running back will allow Kamara to get back to being more of a passing threat where he excels.

Saquon Barkley would look great in a Saints uniform (I’m just saying).

The Milwaukee Bucks have started playing great defense, but I see still a playoff flameout.

Don’t sleep on Duke in the NCAA tournament. The Blue Devils have a solid team, and have been somewhat overlooked this season, which makes them dangerous in the NCAA tournament.

I predict the Dallas Cowboys will overpay for a free-agent running back this season after letting Tony Pollard leave via free agency. The Cowboys are desperate for a big-name runner to take the heat off of Dak Prescott. Look for Jerry Jones to break out that check book.

And finally…

Will Wade deserves credit for transforming McNeese State men’s basketball, but the stench from his LSU debacle remains.