2015 Sportsperson of the Year and Most Important Moments in Sports

Publisher’s Note:

Maya Moore has been a thrill to watch over the years, and it’s an honor to celebrate her winning ways as this year’s REAL SPORTS Sportsperson of the Year.

This year’s Most Important Moment is the calling out of the inability of the WNBA to gain traction since its founding 19 years ago. The WNBA, as the most globally visible team sport, has yet to find its groove. The timing of Adam Silver’s comments deflated some, but if women’s sports fans are truly reflective, they will see the truth in his words. A fresh approach is needed to enable the WNBA to thrive on its own terms, where it can be a profitable league while also serving as a mission-driven organization.

View the 2015 Top 10 Most Important Moments in Sports and Tribute to Maya Moore, 
REAL SPORTS 2015 Sportsperson of the Year Poster

The next president will inherit a league that has lost its relevance to all but its most-staunch fans and one that is wrestling with the public words of Gilbert Arenas and non-spoken words of others.  The league needs to chart its own course with focused profitability and sustained growth. Doing so will require rebuilding the WNBA brand and fan engagement, if the league is truly destined to be relevant in the sports entertainment and lifestyle arena.

(C) ISI Photos by Steven Lineman

In closing, I also want to acknowledge and thank Abby Wambach for her outstanding career and congratulate her on her retirement.  2015 turned out to be the year the USWNT recaptured the Women’s World Cup and in doing so, Abby’s role on the team changed from the go to star to the elder stateswoman. As the all-tie goal scorer in international soccer for men or women with 184 goals, her impact though is measured across the 15 years that she played internationally.

All the best,
Amy Love

Founder/Publisher

REAL SPORTS publishes this annual Most Important Moments in Sports edition and Sportsperson of the Year as a commitment to the history of women’s sports.  This nonprofit effort pays tribute to the passion exhibited by the 300,000 fans that engaged REAL SPORTS, The Authority in Women’s Sports, when it was a printed publication. 

REAL SPORTS 2015 Sportsperson of the Year

Winner

2015 WNBA champion Maya Moore has won three titles, an MVP award, a Rookie of the Year award, and an Olympic Gold Medal in her first five seasons in the WNBA league. No NHL, NBA, NFL, or MLB player has ever done that. She’s also excelled overseas. In 2012, she won both the Spanish league title and EuroLeague title playing for Ros Casares Valencia. From 2013 to 2015, Moore also won the Chinese league title every year.

Maya Moore at the 2015 WNBA All-Star game held at the Mohegan Sun in Uncasville CT
Photo credit: Danny Karwoski (Karwoski Facebook) CC BY-SA 3.0 

As for 2015, the Minnesota Lynx were the best team in the Western Conference through the regular season on their way to their third championship.

In 2006 and 2007, Moore was named the Naismith Prep Player of the Year. She was the John Wooden Award winner in 2009 after leading UConn to an undefeated season and a national title. The following season, Moore led Connecticut to its second straight and in the 2010–11 season, she led the Huskies to an NCAA record (all divisions) of 90 wins. On May 18, 2011, Moore became the first female basketball player to sign with Jordan Brand.

Here career exemplifies a sports person of the year and her accomplishments this year led REAL SPORTS to selecting her as the 2015 Sportsperson of the Year.

Follow Maya Moore at http://mooremaya.com  

Most Important Moments in Sports

# 1 Calling It As He Sees It

It takes guts to say the emperor has no clothes.  Adam Silver, who took over as NBA commissioner in February 2014, said the equivalent regarding the WNBA just prior to the 2015 WNBA Playoffs, when he called into question the fans, the media and the foundation upon which the league is based. 

Brittney Griner dunking at the 2015 WNBA All-Star game held at the Mohegan Sun in Uncasville CT
By Danny Karwoski (Karwoski Facebook) CC BY-SA 3.0 

His comments were direct, honest and reflective. He said the league has not lived up to its potential, criticized the lack of press coverage and pointed to poor profitability. The things he said did not sit well with some in the media, some of the fan base and were seen by many as a lack of endorsement for then-WNBA President Laurel Richie.  It was no surprise when Richie stepped down later in the year. 

Ex-commissioner David Stern had propped up and kept the league alive, but now Sliver can raise questions without the challenges of being the founding father, as it were. An added element of credibility for Silver is he one of the league’s behind-the-scenes architects.  But the WNBA needs to a new wardrobe!

WNBA Average Game Attendance

2015: 7,318

2014: 7,578

1998: 10,864

1997: 9,662

Read more about Adam Silver's comments: http://ftw.usatoday.com/2015/09/adam-silver-on-wnba-we-thought-it-would-have-broken-through-by-now

Most Important Moments in Sports

#2 United States Recaptures World Cup

The U.S. Women’s National Team stunned Japan in the opening minutes of the match and went on to defeat the defending World Cup champion 5-2, becoming the first three-time FIFA Women’s World Cup winner. 

Photo Credit: (C) ISI Photos by Steven Limentani

In the first 16 minutes of play, the U.S. took a 4-0 lead after Carli Lloyd netted the fastest hat trick in Women’s World Cup history, and then Lauren Holiday added a goal to put the United States up by a wide margin.

Photo Credit: (C) ISI Photos by Steven Limentani

Twenty-three million watched the game on TV, setting a record for soccer-game viewing on a single U.S. network.

Photo Credit: (C) ISI Photos by Steven Limentani

The World Cup also featured two players who played in their record sixth World Cup: Formiga, 37, of Brazil and Homare Sawa, 36, of Japan. Plus, a lawsuit over playing on artificial turf rather than grass and was somewhat overshadowed by the corruption scandal that led to the arrest of several prominent FIFA members.

Read more about the US Team's Victory from Rolling Stone.