The WNBA Tips Off
1996 to 1997. A professional league built on the 1996 Olympic team
In 1995, USA Basketball brought its best women together for 18 months of training and a year-long world tour. They went 52 and 0 before the 1996 Atlanta Olympics, then won all eight Olympic games and beat Brazil 111 to 87 for gold. Guard Dawn Staley later said that two professional leagues were waiting to see how well the team did.
The NBA approved a women's league on 24 April 1996. The WNBA started with eight teams, the slogan "We Got Next" and stars such as Rebecca Lobo, Lisa Leslie and Sheryl Swoopes. On 21 June 1997, in Inglewood, California, the New York Liberty beat the Los Angeles Sparks 67 to 57 in front of 14,284 fans. Penny Toler scored the first basket.
The Houston Comets, led by Cynthia Cooper, Sheryl Swoopes and Tina Thompson, won the first four titles from 1997 to 2000. A rival league, the ABL, shut down during its third season, while the WNBA has kept growing, with 15 teams in 2026.
What changed
The best American players finally had a lasting professional league at home, backed by the NBA. Young players now had a clear path from college to the pros without leaving the country.