Peyton Manning, Candace Parker Group Eyes Nashville WNBA Team Named After Pat Summitt
By: Joseph Zucker
Hall of Fame quarterback Peyton Manning and two-time WNBA MVP Candace Parker are among the figures looking to bring a WNBA expansion franchise to Nashville, Tennessee
The Associated Press’ Teresa M. Walker reported that former Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam is the lead financial backer behind the project.
The theoretical team already has a nickname as well, the Tennessee Summitt. The nickname honors legendary Tennessee women’s basketball coach Pat Summitt.
“Tennessee is the DNA of everything women’s basketball stands for,” Parker said, per Walker. “I’m excited to be a part of the group working to bring a WNBA team to the state and honor Coach Summitt’s legacy.”
Parker also shared a mockup of the Summitt’s potential branding on Instagram while underlining her passion for the idea.
“If you know me, you know how important and impactful Coach Summitt IS on my life,” the Lady Vols legend said. “Coach makes me the best version of myself as a mother, wife, daughter, sister, teammate, and person. I’m honored that we are submitting a bid to the @wnba today for a franchise to be named in her honor.
“Adding the Summitt would be a slight departure from the WNBA’s general expansion strategy right now. The incoming Golden State Valkyries, Toronto Tempo and Portland franchise all play in markets with WNBA teams.”
The WNBA does, however, have three teams in non-NBA markets: Connecticut Sun, Las Vegas Aces and Seattle Storm. In the case of the Storm, they came into the league before the Seattle SuperSonics’ relocation to Oklahoma City, though.
Putting a franchise in Nashville would reflect Summitt’s legacy and how she turned the state of Tennessee into a women’s basketball hotbed and one synonymous with the sport. The Lady Vols have fallen from the heights they enjoyed under Summitt, but they remain a national brand thanks to the eight titles they won and countless stars they produced during her tenure.
Parker is one such example, having captured back-to-back championships in 2007 and 2008 before embarking on what will be a Hall of Fame career in the WNBA.
Regional support for college basketball doesn’t always translate to the pros.
The state of North Carolina is just as basketball-mad. The WNBA’s Charlotte Sting nonetheless folded in 2007, and the city lost the Charlotte Hornets to New Orleans in 2002 before the Charlotte Bobcats emerged in 2004 and eventually assumed the Hornets branding and history.
In general, the fan support for the Hornets falls well short of the followings that UNC, Duke, Wake Forest and NC State collectively and in some cases individually possess.
But Nashville is a major sports city and the Southeast region isn’t well-represented in the WNBA. The Atlanta Dream are the only team in that portion of the country.
Having a franchise thrive in a non-NBA market would also open the door for a lot of fresh relocation candidates down the line.
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