EDITORIAL – A WNBA Toronto team was announced on May 23, 2024, and was earlier first reported by Shireen Ahmed of CBC Sports. This will be the first-ever professional women’s basketball team in Canada, at least in the modern era (there was a notable team that existed from 1912-40 called the Edmonton Grads). They will follow suit of the Toronto Raptors and the Toronto Blue Jays as Canada’s only team. However, it is important to note that unlike pro women’s basketball, there are at least other pro teams that exist in men’s basketball and baseball.
How The WNBA Toronto Team Came to Be?
As reported by Shireen Ahmed of CBC Sports, Larry Tanenbaum and Kilmer Group Inc. was granted a WNBA franchise in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. They would later in that same month grant Toronto a WNBA team. This is what the WNBA commissioner, Cathy Engelbert, said in response to Stacey Dales, a former Canadian WNBA All-Star (source: WNBA YouTube Account):
She is referring to the Toronto Raptors championship run, where they won the Larry O’Brien trophy in 2019. She also mentioned earlier from the same video that she wanted to do a pre-season game in Toronto in 2020, but was unable to, because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Eventually, the WNBA had two pre-season games in Canada. The first one was last year between the Chicago Sky and the Minnesota Lynx. This was also where there was a sold-out crowd in Toronto at Scotiabank Arena. They then played at Rogers Place in Edmonton this year as the LA Sparks won against the Seattle Storm in yet another sold-out arena.
It was not easy, as Rogers decided to back out of getting a WNBA team (as reported by Doug Smith of the Toronto Star). However, Larry Tanenbaum decided to pursue the team via Kilmer Group Inc. and was able to get Teresa Resch involved as the President of the WNBA Toronto team.
What It Means for Women’s Basketball in Canada?
A WNBA Toronto team has been talked about for decades, but to see it come into fruition is something wonderful to see. Larry Tanenbaum mentioned that this team would play regular season games in Montreal and Vancouver in 2026. This seems to indicate that the WNBA Toronto team might be Canada’s team for awhile as of right now. This seems to be indicated in what Tanembaum said about the WNBA Toronto team (source: WNBA Official Release):
“Today is a game-changing day not only for women’s basketball but also for sports in Canada,” said Tanenbaum. “This franchise will be Canada’s team, and we are so excited to unite the country and inspire pride and passion in fans from coast to coast.”
This can be seen with current Canadian basketball players as well. Lauren Rainford, who plays in the Maritime Women’s Basketball Association, said this about what this means (source: CBC P.E.I.):
As of right now, Canada has four current WNBA players, which puts them third in number of players by nationality. Only the U.S., and Australia are ahead of them. This WNBA Toronto team has the chance to increase that number even more and it would not be surprising that eventually Canada has the second most players by nationality playing in the WNBA.
Just look at the NBA before the Canadian Expansion, which was only a few players, and now, Canada produces the second-most NBA players of any nationality right now (Source: World Population Review). However, more importantly, it is something to aspire to, which has not been the case before this WNBA Toronto team became a reality last month.
Why This Is a Big Deal?
To understand what it means to have a WNBA Toronto team, one must understand what it was like without a WNBA team. This is what the 2012 Olympian, Alisha Tatham, said about not having a WNBA team in this city (Source: Dave Zarum of Sportsnet):
“I absolutely think a WNBA team would have changed my perspective on where I could have pursued my dreams of basketball,” says former Canadian national team standout and 2012 Olympian Tatham.
While playing in Toronto, DeMar DeRozan echoed a similar statement about his daughter, who he takes to the Los Angeles Sparks games (source: Zarum of Sportsnet):
“I want her to see that it’s capable for women to play at the highest level as well,” he says. “We need to have a system where women can express themselves in the sport of basketball here in Canada as well. It would go a long way. There’s a lot of up-and-coming young girls who are aspiring to play basketball.”
Now, this is possible with this WNBA Toronto team. TSN currently owns the rights to broadcast the WNBA games, and would have the ability to show the games nationally along with their sister company, RDS.
Future of Women’s Sports in Canada
READ MORE: Canadian WNBA Players: Top Five Players in Canada
There are two main dreams this basketball writer has. One is to have a WNBA Toronto team, and the other is to have a professional women’s basketball league. With the former being officially confirmed last month, the latter might be more likely to happen. The reason is that when they see such high-profile businesspeople get involved in professional women’s basketball in Canada, it might convince others to invest more into this sport in Canada. This is what the Canadian Elite Basketball League Commissioner, Mike Morreale, said this about a potential professional women’s basketball league in the country on TSN:
“So, I’ve always believed that, because the infrastructure we’ve created here that operating a women’s league would be, we’re not going to say it is easy, but it wouldn’t be hard to start. And of course, we have to look at the dynamics of where and when we can play in the time of year and all that kind of stuff. But I would put my hand up 100% of the time and say from an infrastructure point of view can play a huge major role. And we want to do that, too.”
Optimism with Women Sports in Canada and in Toronto
Some people might say to get a second or a third WNBA team in Canada, but right now it seems unlikely. Saying that, there has been rumours of a WNBA team returning to Detroit (originally reported by Jay Davis and also reported by Phillip Lewis), which could help in that (Source: Click on Detroit).
Even though Detroit is an American city, it is right next to the Canadian border, where Windsor, Ontario is located. A professional women’s basketball league though, is something that can happen much sooner and it would provide many opportunities for Canadians to play at home. The question though is who is going to invest in this league and would they play in the summer or in the winter months of Canada
READ MORE: The Northern Super League is Born
This is also just the beginning of professional women’s sports in Canada as there are three professional women’s ice hockey teams in the PWHL and the recently announced Northern Super League (a professional women’s soccer league in Canada), which will kick-off with six teams next year. In all those leagues and in the WNBA, Toronto has a professional sports team, meaning it will become a well-renowned professional women’s sports city for years to come.
Photo Credit: WNBA Toronto Facebook Page on May 24, 2024.