Legendary women\u2019s basketball coach Geno Auriemma has weighed in on a WNBA season with as much coverage of what\u2019s happening off the court as on.<\/p>\n
Auriemma, a towering figure in the women\u2019s game with a record 12 NCAA titles at the University of Connecticut, spoke on TODAY Aug. 12 about the state of the women\u2019s professional game. He was asked broadly about controversies facing the league and \u201cthe \u201cconversation around the differences between the players.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s a shame because for years we\u2019ve wanted more attention paid to women\u2019s sports, craved the attention, wanted it, deserved it, and it never came to the extent that it is today,\u201d Auriemma said. \u201cAnd now the attention unfortunately is on the wrong things. <\/p>\n
\u201cSo they need to figure out a way to bring the attention back to the incredible young players that have come into the league, the incredible teams that are in the league, the level of play, how much it\u2019s changed,\u201d he added. <\/p>\n
He said he wants to see the conversation \u201cget back to the game.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cLet\u2019s talk about the game instead of these hypothetical things that may or may not happen down the road,\u201d Auriemma said.<\/p>\n
The WNBA has been roiled with issues this season, including the physical play from opponents against Indiana Fever star Caitlin Clark.<\/a> Then on Aug. 8, the WNBA rescinded a technical foul<\/a> from Clark, her eighth of the season, that would\u2019ve resulted in a one-game suspension. <\/p>\n Her Fever teammate, Sophie Cunningham, also has been a lightning rod for her comments in an ESPN story<\/a> published on July 21 in which she said she wants \u201cto protect young girls in a locker room, or young girls in sport who shouldn\u2019t have to go against biological men.\u201d <\/p>\n Her remarks became the latest fodder for online culture wars regarding transgender athletes. The WNBA has never had an openly transgender player in the history of the league.<\/p>\n A flagrant foul against Cunningham by Chicago Sky guard DiJonai Carrington in a game on Aug. 8 also made headlines, with Carrington posting \u201cWHITE PRIVILEGE\u201d on her Threads account shortly after being ejected<\/a> from the game. Carrington then denied that her social media post had any connection to the hard foul in a post on X<\/a> on Aug. 11. <\/p>\n Indiana Fever coach Stephanie White, accused of not supporting Cunningham after the flagrant foul, gave a statement to reporters Aug. 11 broadly slamming hate and divisiveness in the WNBA.<\/p>\n