Josh Pehlke remembers having to beg and plead at bars and restaurants to get them to show WNBA games just a few years ago. Too often, the answer was a flat-out no.
These days, he doesn't have to worry as much. As the general manager at Signature Bar & Restaurant in Chicago's South Loop neighbourhood, about a 3-point shot from the Chicago Sky's home at Wintrust Arena, he has some say.
But even when he's not at work, he has noticed a difference. "I've been to Cubs games this season and gone into sports bars in Wrigleyville and found the WNBA on TV, whereas two or three years ago, that wasn't happening," Pehlke said.
The WNBA drew sellout crowds and unprecedented ratings in a transformational season that's winding down with a finals matchup between the New York Liberty, seeking their first title, and the Minnesota Lynx going for their record fifth.