WNBA execs will meet this week at the league's All-Star
Game in N.Y. "to discuss a fallen star -- Los Angeles,"
according to Earl Gustkey of the L.A. TIMES. Gustkey:
"What's up with owner Jerry Buss and son Johnny? Are they
looking for a way out of their WNBA commitment?" The team's
attendance of 6,799 is down almost 11% from last year's
7,653 and ranks them next to last in the league. Gustkey
wonders: "Is it a stretch to imagine the Sparks moving into
Staples Center in the summer of 2001 ... under the banner of
the Clippers?" Johnny Buss said he brought up the Clippers
at a recent league meeting: "[WNBA President Val] Ackerman
was scolding me in front of everybody for our attendance and
sponsorship sales, and she told me, 'Johnny, you need to
pick it up.' So I blurted out: 'What're you going to do,
take the team away from us and give it to the Clippers?'
She didn't say anything, and neither did anyone else."
Buss: "There are two ways you make money at this, by selling
tickets and selling sponsorships. We're finding it hard to
sell sponsorships, too. Cleveland is the best in the league
at it, they make $2 million a year. The average is about $1
million. We're at $500,000." Asked if the Sparks could "be
set adrift" in a sale of the Lakers, Buss said, "My Dad just
told me the Lakers are not for sale, but that he's had
'wonderful offers.'" Gustkey wonders how the league's TV
partners would feel if the Sparks cease. Lifetime Exec
Producer Brian Donlon: "The reality is that L.A. really
isn't a factor in the WNBA TV ratings. Our best ratings
come from games at Phoenix and Houston" (L.A. TIMES, 7/14).
