WNBL sale making progress as high-profile media magnate closes in on securing the Perth Lynx

An Opals star says the WNBL is at a critical juncture and it’s time Australia’s premier basketball women’s league and the thriving NBL have more of a symbiotic relationship.

Sami Whitcomb of the Fire gestures during an WNBL match last season. Picture: Getty Images

Opals star Sami Whitcomb says the WNBL is at a critical juncture and it’s time Australia’s premier basketball women’s league and the thriving NBL have more of a symbiotic relationship.

Whitcomb’s plea comes as Basketball Australia edges closer to locking in a group of investors to revive the ailing league, while media magnate Craig Hutchison is set to acquire the Perth Lynx license.

Hutchison is closing on a deal with the Lynx, which will see the SEN boss take ownership of his second WNBL franchise alongside the Bendigo Spirit.

We can reveal potential investors in the league will, this week, receive documents outlining the sale’s prospective details.

This will allow interest parties to review the plan to reignite the WNBL, before making any formal commitment.

Townsville Fire’s Sami Whitcomb has called for the WNBL and NBL to shared a more symbiotic relationship. (Photo by Martin Keep/Getty Images)

Basketball Australia currently has multiple interested parties, including NBL boss Larry Kestelman, Tesla Australia boss Robyn Denholm and Southside Flyers owner and Jayco head honcho Gerry Ryan.

It remains unclear if any potential investors will be locked in time for the 2024-2025 WNBL season, which starts in the first week of November.

On the plus side, we can also confirm that the Melbourne Boomers’ move to Geelong will be officially announced on Thursday.

No matter how the WNBL looks in the future, Whitcomb would like to see the battling league build a closer partnership with the NBL.

The veteran guard believes the women’s league can become even stronger if it can work alongside the men’s game – and not against it as seen last season with schedule clashes.

Media mogul Craig Hutchison is closing in on owning his second WNBL club. Picture: Getty Images

“It’s where you are not putting men’s games on at exactly the same time or day as the women and putting them in direct competition – it doesn’t make sense to do that,” said Whitcomb, who is in America preparing for the WNBA season with the Seattle Storm and has played for two WNBL clubs in Perth and Townsville.

“So where there can be this balance and symbiotic relationship where we are both getting things from each other, promoting each other and helping each other.

“It doesn’t have to be the women playing the openers for the men. It doesn’t have to be that kind of alignment, but I do think where there can be a bit of marriage in certain areas.

“I think that would work and you do see that in other sports and leagues.

“I feel like we already have a really nice relationship between the WNBL and NBL players.

“We do support each other by going to games and watching each other, so why not fuse that into the actual DNA of the leagues.”

Sami Whitcomb is nearing a decade in the WNBL. Picture: Getty Images

She has spent most of her WNBL career at Perth Lynx, but shifted to Townsville in 2023. Picture: Getty Images

Whitcomb feels energised and optimistic about the proactive moves to secure the WNBL’s future, but she stressed any deal needs to be “done right”.

She says the women’s domestic basketball competition has long set a precedent for female sport in Australia, but the league is currently being undervalued.

Whitcomb insists it’s time for the WNBL to be given the platform and promotion that it deserves.

“To me this would be such a missed opportunity to not be running the WNBL the way it should be run,” she said.

“I’m super excited about where it can go, but it’s a moment in time where we need to get this right for the longevity of the league.

“It’s such a high quality product, but it needs to be presented properly.

“People need access to it, people need to hear about it and see it and I think that has always been the issue.

“So, this is a really important moment for that, because if we can get it right and get the right people owning and promoting the league in the right way, the product will sell itself.”

Originally published as WNBL sale making progress as high-profile media magnate closes in on securing the Perth Lynx