Perhaps the most highly-anticipated college basketball game that took place on Saturday came when UConn and Iowa squared off in the Women’s NCAA Tournament. So much of the anticipation came from the true freshman matchup between the Huskies’ Paige Bueckers and the Hawkeyes’ Caitlin Clark, and while the game was not especially close — No. 1 UConn beat No. 5 Iowa, 92-72 — these two going toe-to-toe was a glimpse at one of the best individual rivalries that the sport of basketball will have for the next few decades, even if both are close friends.
In the aftermath of the game, Golden State Warriors star Draymond Green took to Twitter to discuss women’s sports. Namely, he wanted to discuss how it, as an entity, could grow in prominence, specifically mentioning the conversation around unequal pay.
Green’s broad point, told through a series of tweets that he didn’t know how to thread: Focusing on pay and not unlocking ways to increase revenue by “telling INDIVIDUAL stories and building up the interest in the players.”
I’ve been seeing a lot of talk about the pay gap between women and men. Especially in sports. It’s not even close. But let’s stop allowing y’all complaints to fall on deaf ears due to numbers. As long as y’all make the argument about pay, while the revenue stays the same…
— Draymond Green (@Money23Green) March 27, 2021
They will continue to point at the revenue not being high enough to cover bigger salaries. While that is true in damn near every business, how do we take that card out of their pockets? That’s the key to changing the pay. There’s no argument for lack of revenue, unless…
— Draymond Green (@Money23Green) March 27, 2021
You make those that say they stand for women actually stand up. The NBA wasn’t always the global game that it is today. It wasn’t always driving as much revenue as it does today. But there were people behind it, building the platform, and more importantly telling INDIVIDUAL…
— Draymond Green (@Money23Green) March 27, 2021
stories and building up the interest in the players. That’s how the game took off. Who’s building up y’all platform? Who’s telling the individual stories of how great y’all are? Building the interest and transforming women’s basketball into a global game?
— Draymond Green (@Money23Green) March 27, 2021
Some may think it’s global because all the women go to overseas and play during the year, but the global response isn’t big enough. Having to go overseas should never be the case but because the stories aren’t told, especially here in the states, y’all hands are forced.
— Draymond Green (@Money23Green) March 27, 2021
I’ve been asked to do so many PSAs this month on women empowerment. I said no. It’s hypocritical. Because these same companies that are telling women empowerment are not putting their money where their mouth is. Call on this companies to support y’all. To infuse capitol into…
— Draymond Green (@Money23Green) March 27, 2021
The business. Stop allowing them to yell women empowerment for the look. No company grows without funding. Y’all business can grow with the proper funding and story telling. Make these huge companies commit money to y’all cause. That’s empowering! Or don’t yell women empowerment
— Draymond Green (@Money23Green) March 27, 2021
As a potential example of this, Green wondered why Bueckers does not declare for the 2021 WNBA Draft, saying that while he understands she is not eligible by the terms laid out by the league’s CBA, he believes this would be the kind of norm-shattering event that takes power from leagues and gives it to players.
I can go on and on but would love to help drive these discussions with y’all. Lastly, if the goal is to become as big as the NBA, you have to push NBA like things. DT said Paige is the best player in basketball already. Why is there no discussion about her leaving this year?
— Draymond Green (@Money23Green) March 27, 2021
Well a huge part of that is because the payoff isn’t as big. It’s not the norm. How do you change the norm and y’all keep doing the same thing? All these companies yelling women empowerment can easily endorse Paige to make up for the lack of payment in y’all league.
— Draymond Green (@Money23Green) March 27, 2021
They can easily tell y’all stories. But they don’t have to because the request that are being made are falling on deaf ears because y’all keep saying pay me more, with no way to drive the revenue. Force hands! Paige number#1 pick 2021!
— Draymond Green (@Money23Green) March 27, 2021
Break the mold and change the game! Most importantly, change the BUSINESS. Call on these companies for support, after all they are using y’all to push WOMEN EMPOWERMENT , but not helping y’all. They’re simply saving face.
— Draymond Green (@Money23Green) March 27, 2021
That’s because they’ve let that continue to be that way. Nobody has pressed the envelope… why not? https://t.co/jBlqjo3zeP
— Draymond Green (@Money23Green) March 27, 2021
Now, even if Green’s intentions are not coming from a bad place, he does show his overall ignorance on the subject by suggesting the issue is that women athletes are not doing everything they can to promote change. An expert in this field, USWNT star and fervent advocate for equality in sports Megan Rapinoe, saw what Green had to say and issued a response.
Among other things, Rapinoe made the point that there is only so far that folks like her and the USWNT can take their battle on their own, saying that “change cannot be made if the only people who care about the change enough are the ones who are suffering the most from it.”
Respectfully, do you really think we haven’t been out here asking for more investment more resources more storytelling more branding and marketing dollars more youth investment more investment in coaches more TV time etc etc etc etc etc to infinity… https://t.co/DctSHGhISO
— Megan Rapinoe (@mPinoe) March 27, 2021
Also when they call you about doing a PSA for Women’s Month, why don’t you also tell them alllllllll the things we have been telling them, since forever.
— Megan Rapinoe (@mPinoe) March 27, 2021
And you know who largely are the gatekeepers to that money, investment, resources, capital, time and sponsorship dollars are? Men. Do you know who men listen to? Other men.
— Megan Rapinoe (@mPinoe) March 27, 2021
Just like with fights around all other social issues, change cannot be made if the only people who care about the change enough are the ones who are suffering the most from it.
— Megan Rapinoe (@mPinoe) March 27, 2021
Green went on to say that stories involving women athletes, mentioning Diana Taurasi, are not told. Rapinoe then responded by saying this is not because Taurasi doesn’t have a compelling story or there haven’t been attempts to tell it, but rather, because no one wants to tell it.
Nobody follows because you have no personal connection. You know LBJ comes from Akron, a single mom etc. where is DT from? What’s her story? You don’t know. Because it’s not told. That’s what builds viewership. Personal attachments. That’s why Nike wins https://t.co/CnnGRVzwz5
— Draymond Green (@Money23Green) March 27, 2021
DT is from chino with immigrant parents from Italy and Argentina she went to UConn and played in EKAT. She is married, had a dog named after her favorite soccer player Leo Messi she has a son Leo and she is the best to ever do it. 🐐 (along with bae of course😍) https://t.co/6jzbTfM5Ao
— Megan Rapinoe (@mPinoe) March 27, 2021
No one tells this story because they 👏🏼 don’t 👏🏼 fucking 👏🏼 want to. They don’t want to because it would shift the scales of power.
— Megan Rapinoe (@mPinoe) March 27, 2021
Rapinoe might be the authority on these sorts of things — she went to Washington this week on Equal Pay Day to testify in front of Congress and visit the White House alongside USWNT teammate Midge Purce — so it would behoove Green to both listen to what she has to say and do what he can do as one of the most prominent athletes in the United States to be part of the solution here.
