I really thought that stunts like added retired players or really tall/short people was left in the minor leagues. Well apparently not. Two days after a brawl that gave the league more press than it's ever had, the WNBA decided 50 year old ESPN broadcaster Nancy Lieberman needed to play for a night.

HOUSTON (AP) -- Hall of Famer Nancy Lieberman showed she still had one nifty pass left in her.

The 50-year-old Lieberman had two assists, including a no-look pass in the closing minutes of the Detroit Shock's 79-61 loss to the Houston Comets on Thursday night.

Lieberman made a one-time only appearance in the Shock's first game since Tuesday night's bench-clearing melee with the Los Angeles Sparks.

Five Shock players were suspended and Cheryl Ford sustained a season-ending injury, prompting coach Bill Laimbeer to offer Lieberman a seven-day contract.

Lieberman was once a great player, but come on WNBA. There was really NO ONE ELSE they could sign? This reeks of publicity stunt. The first real intense thing happens in your league in its history and you go and do something cheesy like this? I'm not saying that fighting should be highlighted, but it happens in Sports. The biggest knock on the WNBA was/is that the players are soft and Tuesday night showed that wasn't the case. After the ridiculous Mahorn "Peacemaker" suspension and this, I think the WNBA set a record time for losing validity.

(P.S.- I would have pulled the video, but it's Friday and ultimately I don't think you really care.)

Man, there are fights and then there are fiiiiights. This one is pure gold on so many levels that I can't even explain what's going on. I know what we can do! Let's have a scavenger hunt!!! Please look for the following items and check them off your list as we go along....

1. Everybody's All-American, Candace Parker getting tangled up with a Detroit Shock player Plenette Pierson.
2. Parker taking down said player with a Cobra Kai like leg sweep.
3. The benches clearing.
4. Coaches Michael Cooper and Bill Laimbeer trying to break the pile up.
5. None other than Rick Mahorn tossing WNBA star Lisa Leslie to the floor.
6. Another Sparks player sticking up for Leslie by punching Mahorn.
7. Shock player, Cheryl Ford blowing out her knee as she attempts to restrain Pierson.
8. All of the Pam Ward replay goodness.

Got it? LET'S PLAY THE FEUUUUUUD!!!!!!!

Good lord that was crazy. Did you catch them all? Go back and watch the beginning again and check out Rick Mahorn just chuck Leslie across the floor. Unbelievable. It looked like he was just trying to play peacekeeper, but I have a feeling people are going to be recalling his Bad Boy days in the fallout to follow.

It's insanely easy to pick on the WNBA these days. You can talk about the slow play, the low scoring or even the level at which the NBA tries to shove it in our face. But even those angles are a bit played out. Well a radio host at 100.3 FM in Minnesota decided to go with the oh so clever lesbian angle.

Some basketball fans and parents are upset by on-air comments by a local radio host.

Thursday morning, radio show host Chris Baker made a controversial statement about the Women’s National Basketball Association.

The topic of Thursday's show on 100.3 KTLK was about things that never lived up to their hype.

But when one caller suggested the WNBA, some say Baker’s response went too far.

"You know what [the WBNA] is? That's a place for lesbians to make out when they score," Baker said.

Forget for a second that the comment offends both the gay community and women, it seriously amazes me that someone would even think that was funny. I mean he might have got away with that joke in 1996 when the league was formed, but come on. There's nothing worse than a hack DJ trying to pass jokes he heard over 10 years ago.

The crazy thing is that it's not the first time he's gotten in trouble over controversial comments on-air. In April he also urged the beating and shooting of Republican National Convention protesters. Seems like a classy guy.

KTLK host under fire for WNBA, gay comments (KSTP)

Again, I'm ashamed that I actually caught this by having to watch a part of a WNBA game, but honesty is the best policy right? Check out the rotating sideline ad that just happened to be up during the second quarter of the Phoenix-Atlanta game....


Well how about that! I'd make fun of Fanhouse advertising during a WNBA game, but I'd love to have the budget to put up an ad during a nationally televised game on ESPN2. Bravo 'Haus! I hope you got at least one or two hits from the 5,000 people watching (I kid, I kid)!!!

It was about a month ago when I got this email from a reader named Patty.

What exactly do you have against Pam Ward?
Do you know her? Have some personal vendetta?
I am just curious.

Now back then I didn't really know what to say. Do I tell her that nothing's really personal, I just think she's bad at what she does and that I don't hate women? Or do I just say that Pam is terrible at her job more often than not and screws up even the basic of Sports concepts? It was a tough call so I did neither. That's why I'm proud to finally answer Patty's question with the following video. I'm pretty sure it doesn't need a setup....

I hope that answers your question Patty and thanks for writing in!!!

WNBA posts are few and far between on this site, but I thought this one was interesting enough to post. The WNBA is opening their season this weekend with Los Angeles and World Champion Phoenix (who knew?) on ABC, but that's not the whole story. Both teams will be sporting Mickey D's logos and the league will be promoting the hell out of some new sandwich....

Women’s National Basketball Association players will wear McDonald’s golden arches on their jerseys for each team’s season opener as part of a marketing alliance between the women’s pro basketball league and the fast food giant this season.

McDonald’s is posting up as presenting partner of the WNBA tip-off games on May 17 to push a new Southern Style Chicken Biscuit and Sandwich. In addition to the season openers, the red-and-yellow logo will be on jerseys during two national telecasts: the Sacramento Monarchs-Seattle Storm May 20 match-up on ESPN and the May 24 San Antonio Silver Spurs-Seattle Storm contest on ABC.

I don't know about you but it's going to take more than a crappy free sandwich to get me interested in the WNBA. If they gave away cars like Oprah then I might attend a Mystics game, but until then I'm going to pretend the league doesn't exist.

Plus the free sandwich deal was yesterday and I'm really just bitter I didn't get one. Look at the pic up there. Doesn't that look appetizing? No??? Okay good.

WNBA Jerseys to Carry McDonald’s Logo in Season Openers (Promo Magazine)

Whoooo! I now know how I'm spending my afternoon!!! It's that time of the year folks! The time that I don't know the WNBA Draft is coming on until a randomly surf by it changing channels!!!! All the Stars are out for this momentous occasion and I'll be live-blogging the whole thing*.

ESPN2 will televise live the first round of the 2008 WNBA Draft presented by adidas Wednesday, April 9, at 1 p.m. Pam Ward will host the one-hour telecast, from Palm Harbor, Fla., with analysts Doris Burke, Carolyn Peck and Nancy Lieberman and reporter Rebecca Lobo.

So if you're near a TV right now and you want to watch teams such as the Lynx, the Monarchs, and the Dream draft players you've probably never heard of....then by all means turn it to ESPN2.

(Via ESPN PR)

*- There's no way in hell I would ever do this and/or subject you to that.

I know it's kind of played out to make fun of Women's Sports but it's just so damn funny at times. This is a clip from the sketch comedy show West Palm Wrestling on MTV from last night (I was waiting for Human Giant to come on....I swear!) and it's a look into the new video game sensation that's sweeping the Nation!!!

Very Jordan vs. Bird like, but I like it!

All summer long you saw the promos....The WNBA on ESPN, Basketball Is Beautiful (or whatever their 9th different slogan was), etc. etc. Then the Finals came and you got highlights on Sports Center and even more promos. Just like the AFL, you could easily tell that ESPN had just signed a new deal (8 years) to keep the WNBA on the network.

Fast forward to Sunday. Phoenix comes back from being down two games to one to shock the Shock in Game seven five and wins their first WNBA title. Diana Taurasi, the poster girl for the league, had just helped the Arizona team win it all and newcomer Cappie Pondexter won the MVP!!! Ratings were up from last year's playoffs....things were looking good for ESPN's new deal.

Whoops. As AZ Sports Hub points out ESPN.com can't even figure out which teams are playing in the Final (item 8).

You see the team from Phoenix, you know the one that won the whole thing, are actually the Mercury. The team from Connecticut is the Sun. I know they are both hot and within our solar system, but one is a star and the other is a planet/element. They are two very different things Mr. King.

AZ Sports Hub also passed along that it was up for a good hour before anyone noticed the gaff on the main page of ESPN.com.

ESPN Gives No Love To The Champs (AZ Sports Hub)

Let's all stop bickering about the 25-hour college football thingy, and go back to agreeing with each other. Are you like me in that you had no idea that the WNBA Playoffs started tomorrow? You were?!?!?! Awesome! We're all friends again.

Here's the First Round Announcing Schedule for you if you're planning on watching. Heck there's nothing else going on....you mind as well right (Pam Ward is an added bonus!)?

Thu., Aug. 23

Indiana at Connecticut - Game 1
7 p.m.
ESPN2
Pam Ward, Doris Burke and Rebecca Lobo

Sat., Aug. 25

Sacramento at San Antonio - Game 2
1 p.m.
ESPN2
Ward, Carolyn Peck and Holly Rowe

Sun., Aug. 26

New York at Detroit - Game 2
1 p.m.
ABC
Ward, Burke and Lobo

Seattle at Phoenix - Game 2
7 p.m.
ESPN2
Dave Pasch, Peck and Rowe

Tue., Aug. 28

New York at Detroit - Game 3 *
7 p.m.
ESPN2
Ward, Burke and Lobo

Seattle at Phoenix - Game 3 *
9 p.m.
ESPN2
Pasch, Peck and Rowe

I can't believe the Mystics missed the playoffs, but hey they did set the attendance record a bunch of year by giving away thousands, er selling....a lot of tickets.

Six Degrees of Bird, Taurasi, Jackson ... (WNBA.com)