The New York Liberty were fined $500,000 for charter flights to away games during the second half of the WNBA season, as well as other league violations, reported Alexa Philippou for ESPN . Unsanctioned trips to Napa, California, funded by team owners Joe and Clara Tsai didn’t sit well with the WNBA either. Joe is the co-founder of the Chinese tech company Alibaba Group, and his wife, Clara purchased the Liberty and the NBA Brooklyn Nets in 2019.
The Tsai’s publicly speaks about the team’s travel accommodations for WNBA players. He tweeted in October joking about the standards the WNBA holds their players to. He’s been a pioneer trying to eliminate the wage gap between the NBA and the WNBA. However, at every stop he seems to be receiving pushback and hardship.
New York Liberty/Brooklyn Nets Owner Joe Tsai has been a longtime advocate for improving travel conditions in the WNBA.
Tsai paid for the Liberty to fly to road games in the second half of the season and even funded a mid-season flight to Napa Valley. pic.twitter.com/NQ1UpJQFOm
— Front Office Sports (@FOS) March 1, 2022
New York Liberty express their feelings on the matter
The WNBA prohibits chartering for any team. In fact, the WNBA fears the competitive nature of the league. It highlights the competitive advantage for teams whose owners can afford costly extravagant arrangements. The commissioner of the WNBA, Cathay Englebert, has openly spoken about supporting the idea of team chartering. However, she believes that the league needs to see financial growth in order to cover these expenses for each team.
The Tsai’s both have attempted to find solutions for all franchises. Yet, it seems that there has been little progress. For example, last season once the WNBA discovered Tsai’s secretly chartering the New York Liberty throughout the year there was major push back. Many of the Liberty players were at odds as they did not attempt to hide the trip. Several of the players chronicled the trip on their social media.
The WNBA clarified that there was no New York Liberty proposal to provide three years of charter flights for WNBA teams, according to a statement given to ESPN.The Liberty had planned to explore charter flight options and present them to the Board, but that hasn’t happened yet.
Sabrina Ionescu, the Liberty’s star player, expressed her frustration with the league’s handling of the situation, calling it a joke on Twitter.
What a joke😂😂😂 https://t.co/SdedaL1vyN
— Sabrina Ionescu (@sabrina_i20) March 1, 2022
