During Wednesday’s airing of ESPN’s Get Up, Jalen Rose spoke to co-host Mike Greenberg about the Las Vegas Aces being forced to forfeit a recent game. The former NBA star shared his opinion on how vastly different WNBA players are treated than their male counterparts.
It's not right how @WNBA players are being treated! @getupespn pic.twitter.com/qHCwt9aVP8
— Jalen Rose (@JalenRose) August 8, 2018
“I’ve been really vocal about my disappointment about how the WNBA athletes get treated like second-class citizens in relations to the NBA when they’re a subsidiary,” Rose said regarding the forfeiture. The Aces team canceled their Aug. 3 game against the Washington Mystics after health concerns surrounding 25 hours of travel time to get to the state due to flight delays.
He continued, “It’s one thing to have them flying commercial, but it’s another thing when they have travel issues, to not make an [exception] for them not being able to perform.” Rose was critical of the league’s decision to try to make the athletes play with only one hour to prepare for the game. The former player asserted the crucial role mental or physical “fatigue” have in an athlete becoming injured.
The 13-year basketball veteran then addressed the distract gender pay gap saying, “Maya Moore is one of the greatest champions in basketball, male or female. A couple of years ago in the WNBA, she was making $45,000.” He feels as though the players are not being valued, a sentiment WNBA rookie A’Ja Wilson spoke about last month.
Rose stated that for the WNBA to grow and become popular the league needs to invest in its players.
