WNBA analyst Emily Austin called out the Atlanta Dream and the Golden State Valkyries for heading to the locker room during the national anthem.
The Ballhalla Arena was packed with fans eager to watch Game 1 between the Valkyries and the Dream, who swept their opponents to reach the WNBA Finals. Although the Valkyries won, controversy surrounded the game even before tip-off.
It is customary that both teams wait on the court for the national anthem. On Saturday, it was sung by recording artist Goapele. However, when she started the anthem, both teams walked towards the locker room and only returned to the court after its completion.
This led to a lot of fans expressing their disappointment on social media, as they thought it was disrespectful from both teams.
Emily Austin says walking out during national anthem was disrespectful
Game 1 of the WNBA Finals was supposed to garner a lot of attention only for basketball reasons but with both teams deciding to not be present on the court for the national anthem, there were more talking points than just the game.
Austin, who has been very vocal about topics in the WNBA, was disappointed with what had happened ahead of the Finals and put out a message.
“Walking out during the national anthem is disgraceful. If you hate this country so much, you’re free to leave,” wrote Austin on X.
She also had a message for the entire WNBA. The sports broadcaster said: “The WNBA has incredible talent and somehow manages to make everything BUT basketball the headline. These women deserve better leadership.”
There are no reports that suggest this was a planned action by both teams. It is unclear if it will be repeated for Game 2, but the public criticism will definitely lead to some level of involvement from the WNBA, who are yet to comment on what happened in Game 1.
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