WNBA basketball got knocked down a peg yesterday when Houston Comets owner Hilton Koch announced that the team will relocate from the Toyota Center to the smaller (and thus easier to fill) Reliant Arena. (Feel like a step-child yet, ladies?)
“Reliant Arena’s smaller venue will be a great setting for our boisterous fans and will help create a powerful home-court advantage for our team,” Koch said via a press release.
Whatever.
Reliant Arena is being Comet-ized with the Kim Perrot Memorial Locker Room and the Cooper’s Corner VIP entrance, but it’s going to take a lot more than a cute name over a side door to attract fans – the players are going to have to start to deliver some wins.
The Comets finished last season with a 13-21 record. Dismal. The team had a spectacular start back in 1997 when they won the first four WNBA championships straight. Then Cynthia Cooper retired and the Comets haven’t made it past the first round of the play-offs since.
Koch announced that the team will be hanging their four championship banners in Reliant Arena on opening night of the 2008 season. Unless there are some drastic changes in both the coaching staff and player roster, they won’t be adding another one anytime soon.
Hey, just for laughs, girls, do something different: win. — Olivia Flores Alvarez
This article appears in Dec 13-19, 2007.
