Craig Carton Links the WNBA Finals Embarrassment Directly to the League's Obsession With Its Agenda

Craig Carton Blasts the WNBA After Booking a Concert at State Farm Arena on Finals Dates, Forcing the Atlanta Dream Into the 3,500-Seat Gateway Center Arena

Craig Carton can't believe the WNBA Finals will be played in Atlanta in front of 3,500 people | Craig's cartoon show

The WNBA Finals are almost over, but the controversy is brewing. The Atlanta games will only hold 3,500 fans because State Farm Arena was booked for another event. Craig Carton cuts through the planning chaos.

Craig Carton didn't hold back on the OutKick during the WNBA's "Craig Carton Show" on Monday.

Carton breaks down WNBA Finals scheduling and tournament venues around the Atlanta Dream. She lit up the WNBA front office after State Farm Arena executives booked potential finals dates, forcing the championship games into a minor league venue while the league sat on its hands.

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"The WNBA Finals won't be at State Farm Arena when it goes to Atlanta for two or three games," Carton said.

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And not just because they can't sell it, which they proved last week, but because the people who own and manage the arena have had to make a decision: do we save the dates months and months and months in advance for the possibility of a dream show, or do we actually use those open dates and sell them to events that attract more people? They chose the latter."

Carton Zero Most Embarrassing Detail: The Dreams were kicked out of their own floor to make room for the Somber concert.

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Carton noted, "The first event that will be State Farm Stadium instead of an Atlanta basketball game is a performer I've never heard of, either his name or the band name SOMBR, S-O-M-B-R."

"Raise your hand if you've heard of SOMBR. I haven't. SOMBR averages about 10-12,000 people per gig, which is fantastic. So congratulations to SOMBR. That means it'll still be empty, but a few more people than it was when Atlanta Dream played."

Two Hawks games and one independent gig kicked a WNBA title out of her home building. With the NBA owning the league, a phone call could have blown the floor...proving the league's outfits were completely asleep at the wheel.

"Not only are they not playing at State Farm Arena, they're playing at Gateway Center Arena," Carton explained.

"Gateway Center Arena is a great high school gym. The maximum capacity for a basketball game is 3,500. I just researched. There are two other arenas within 30 miles of State Farm Arena that hold 10-12,000."

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Carton added: "I wish they were selling those games, whether they were giving away free tickets or actually selling them. It would look great, small high school gym, rabid fans watching the WNBA finals. But that's what you get when you ask for it."

Preaching to your fans instead of promoting your true stars, and you get what you pay for...Carton made it clear that the WNBA's first narrative obsession has decimated and lost them.

"They want someone other than Caitlin [Clark] or Sophie [Cunningham] to be the face of the league," Carton says.

"Last week, only about half a million people watched the Atlanta Dream play in their series against, I think it was the New York Liberty series, right? Half a million views; nobody cares why nobody cares? Because the most popular players aren't in it."

Tips for Game 1 of the WNBA Finals on Saturday, October 17.

Alejandro Avila is a longtime OutKick writer living in Southern California.

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