Player and owner conflicts are anything but new to the sports world. The conflicts often stem from salary disagreements resulting from a league’s collective bargaining agreement, such as the 2011 NBA lockout. Other times, a star player is dissatisfied with the competitive or strategic direction of the team.
The players on the Atlanta Dream, though, have a more distinct issue with one of the team’s owners, former Georgia Sen. Kelly Loeffler. Loeffler initially attracted the ire of the players when she, as a sitting senator, wrote to the WNBA this summer to denounce the league’s support for the Black Lives Matter movement. In response, Dream players organized fundraisers and social media campaigns for her opponent, now Sen. Raphael Warnock (D-Ga.), in Georgia’s special Senate election. Warnock went on to beat Loeffler a few weeks ago. While the players may have successfully achieved a political goal, Loeffler still owns about a half of the franchise, maintaining her presence in the lives of the Dream players.
Dream and Mercury players are wearing “Vote Warnock” shirts to their game today.
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) August 4, 2020
Raphael Warnock is running against Kelly Loeffler for Senate. Loeffler is a co-owner of the Dream and said she opposes the Black Lives Matter movement.
(via @sportsiren)pic.twitter.com/w1INikFQPQ
The question now remains: are the Dream players just stuck playing under someone they despise, or do they have the power to change these circumstances in their favor? To achieve their goal of replacing Loeffler as owner, they could either try to strike or force the sale of the team, and given that the players have already used their voices to force change in the Senate, they can and should now do the same for themselves. The players should avoid a direct conflict with Loeffler and instead pressure other WNBA owners to force Loeffler out of the league.
While U.S. labor law provides the framework for workers to resolve conflict or force change upon their employers, the traditional tool of striking is unlikely to work in this circumstance.
The average WNBA player only competes in the league between three and four years. Even the more accomplished players only have earning windows of about 10 years before having to find new employment. On top of all that, the average WNBA salary is about $100,000. While we tend to think of professional athletes as unilaterally rich, WNBA rookie contracts are $68,000 at their highest.
When strikes are effective, owners are typically motivated to cede to avoid losing profit. This is a unique case, however, because any profits Loeffler receives as a result of her ownership stake comprise a microscopic portion of her overall wealth. A strike would therefore do little to even the power imbalance between Loeffler and the players, making the strike an ineffective approach to motivating Loeffler to sell her share of the team. The team’s strategy this fall, however, may be the solution.
The Dream, a small group of just 12 players, were able to use their voices effectively once before. When they decided to oppose Loeffler in the Senate election, they did not blindly choose to support Warnock. In fact, there were a plethora of Democratic candidates battling in the primary during the Dream’s movement in August 2020. After careful research, the team selected to endorse Warnock, who was polling 9% support at the time. With this endorsement and custom shirts that said “Vote Warnock,” the reverend immediately began receiving more donations and a greater media following. Many credit the Dream as a key factor in his eventual victory.
While this present situation is different, as there is no election in which the public can choose to replace Loeffler, the same principles can be applied. The Dream can use its voice and place in the public eye to create and foster an anti-Loeffler movement. The Dream’s activism has already contributed to the public souring on her by highlighting the fact that her net worth increased during COVID-19 while many Americans financially suffered and how she refused to support her Black players, coaches and front office staff this summer at the peak of the Black Lives Matter protests. Loeffler may assume that since she is no longer a senator, she, along with her attitudes toward racial and economic justice, may fall out of the spotlight. One way for the Dream to ensure this does not happen is to keep her name in the news for any wrongdoings and continue publicly criticizing her worldview respectfully but honestly.
The recent movement of businesses distancing themselves and defunding Republican representatives who refused to certify the presidential election provides a template for the Dream to pressure Loeffler into divesting her ownership in the team. Businesses are learning that there are certain values and political stances that are harmful for brands to be associated with. As a result of public pressure, other WNBA owners could vote for a resolution forcing her to sell, or her co-owner, Mary Brock, could pressure her to sell. Regardless of the method, the Dream has a proven track record of holding Loeffler accountable and should continue to publicly apply pressure; what some might call “cancel culture” would just be the free market at work.
David Miller (22C) is from Falls Church, Virginia.
