Ex-WNBA president Val Ackerman encouraged by league’s growth: ‘Ripe for expansion’

As the founding president of the WNBA, Val Ackerman is thrilled with the direction of the league: skyrocketing TV rating, which were the league’s best in 21 years; new highs across digital platforms, social media engagement and sports betting; rising attendance that was up 16 percent this year from last.

The WNBA is in a great place, which is why Ackerman believes the time is right to increase its reach.

“I think the league is now ripe for expansion,” Ackerman, the Big East commissioner, told The Post in a phone interview. “You have to find the right markets and the right investors, who have the long view. They’re not looking to make money right away, but they believe there’s an asset here that they can nurture and grow.”

The WNBA is expected to move from 12 to 14 teams by 2025.

A Bay Area team will be added, along with another yet-to-be-announced franchise.

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Ackerman believes this is the right direction to be going in and thinks the league could go to as many as 16 teams, granted the right ownership is in place that would make it work.

That’s the most important aspect of this.

The WNBA had 16 teams in 2000 but has been at 12 since the Sacramento Monarchs folded in 2009.

As recently as 2008, it was at 14 teams.

“We were never able to get into the Bay Area. I’m thrilled they’ve finally been able to crack that nut and get a team and a market that, I think, will be very receptive for women’s basketball,” Ackerman said.

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Women’s basketball has been generating more interest of late, and it may only be getting better, with a number of high-profile college players, such as Caitlin Clark of Iowa, Angel Reese of LSU and Paige Bueckers and Azzi Fudd of Connecticut, set to turn pro in the coming years.

“The player pool can certainly support [expansion],” said Ackerman, a member of both the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame and Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame. “When we expanded early, I’m not sure that we had really the depth of the pool of players to support growing to 16 teams. … The player pool is more robust now.”

One thing that never quite translated when it came to the WNBA was the popularity of women’s college basketball, in particular the NCAA Tournament.

That may be changing, though, especially as players build up their brands through their Name, Image & Likeness.

And unlike the men’s game, where players leave early for the NBA, women college basketball players must be at least 22 years of age, have completed their college eligibility, have graduated from a four-year college or be four years removed from high school.

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“It does allow these young women to become household names, in the case of Caitlin Clark, in college,” Ackerman said.

This is an exciting time for Ackerman, as the new college basketball season nears and the Big East enters the season loaded after one of its teams, UConn, won it all a year ago.

She will also be one of the honorees at the The Buoniconti Fund’s 38th annual Great Sports Legends Dinner on Monday at the Marriott Marquis in Midtown.

Other sports luminaries include Michael Strahan, Missy Franklin, Jim Furyk, Zdeno Chara and Jim Thome.

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The event raises money for spinal cord and brain injury and neurological disease research being done by researchers at The Miami Project to Cure Paralysis.

The Buoniconti Fund was established by the family in 1992 after Marc Buoniconti was paralyzed from the shoulders down during a college football game with The Citadel.

Father Nick, a two-time Super Bowl winner with the Dolphins who passed away in 2019, cofounded The Miami Project to help those like his son deal with spinal cord injuries.

“Very honored, of course,” Ackerman said. “To go in with other dignitaries like Michael Strahan and Missy Franklin and others, it’s going to be a really exciting event, probably emotional.”