Why not Liberty?

 

If you're a regular follower of this blog, or a Facebook friend, you know that I am a diehard fan of the New York Mets, who recently suffered defeat at the hands of the Los Angeles Dodgers in the National League Championship Series. 

But just as I was grieving the Mets' loss, another New York City team was winning a championship, and I didn't even realize it until the next morning. The New York Liberty won the WNBA Final against the Minnesota Lynx in overtime at Barclays Center in Brooklyn on the same night that the Dodgers ended the Mets' amazing run in L.A. 

I was aware that the Liberty were playing in the Final in Brooklyn at the same time as the Mets were trying to survive another day in the MLB playoffs. But I'm not much of a basketball fan, having attended only one professional game in my life. It was a Knicks' game at Madison Square Garden over thirty year ago. I went with a group of friends and don't remember much about the game, not even who the Knicks played or who won. The only thing that I remember about the experience was how high up our seats were. I did enjoy watching basketball games in high school and college (both of my schools' teams played in the gymnasium, not an arena, and were not in one of the highly competitive intermural leagues). 

If the Knicks or Nets make it to the NBA Final I would probably watch the games, just as I would watch the Giants or Jets if either made it to the Super Bowl. I cheered for the Cleveland Cavaliers when they won the NBA championship in 2016 because my relatives in Ohio are avid fans. It was the first time in several decades that a major league team in any sport in Cleveland had won a championship. (I also root for the Cleveland Guardians on behalf of my Ohio kin, as long as they're not playing the Mets!)

Besides baseball, my favorite sport to watch is football (or soccer, as you Americans call it). I prefer international matches (like the World Cup or UEFA European Championship) but will occasionally watch an MLS match, especially if a New York team is playing.  

The New York Liberty will get their ticker-tape parade up the "Canyon of Heroes" on October 24, and I will not be there. For one thing, I hate crowds, and for another, I can't really claim to be a fan of the team. I don't think I've ever watched a game and would feel like a bit of a fraud, only jumping on the band wagon after they've won a championship. Yes, I would root for them because they are a New York team, but I haven't suffered the agonies of defeat with them in prior seasons, as I have with my beloved, though often underperforming Mets.

Besides tennis and golf, women's professional sports generally don't get the attention or revenues that men's sports do. As a feminist, I should be more supportive of the WNBA, as well as the National Women's Soccer League and the recently launched Association of Fastpitch Professionals (a women's softball league with a New York team). There is fame and fortune in women's gymnastics and figure skating, and many female Olympic athletes do get the renown (if not the money) that they deserve. The U.S. women's national soccer team has had far more success internationally than the men's team, and they've succeeded in settling a lawsuit with the U.S. Soccer Federation for equal pay with their male counterparts.

So congratulations to the New York Liberty on their championship. I'll probably be paying you a little more attention in the future.