The Sky won their first WNBA championship last season, by the end of which Wintrust Arena was rocking like never before and Chicago’s sports fans appeared to be — to a heartening, impressive degree — engaged and excited.
So, what now? In this week’s “Polling Place” — your home for Sun-Times sports polls on Twitter — we asked voters if they’ll pay closer attention to Candace Parker, Courtney Vandersloot, Kahleah Copper and the rest of this outstanding squad in this new campaign, which opened Friday night.
“Got to show the love,” @JBIRD1268 commented.
Not surprisingly, some felt compelled to make their absence of interest known. (Then again, we did ask.)
“Honestly,” @johnsmythmyth wrote, “I forget there is a WNBA until Twitter says something.”
Meanwhile, @C_Marchio2 invited anyone planning to ignore the Sky to “kick rocks.” It’s just an expression.
Also, we asked about the Kentucky Derby — will you be watching? — and whether or not you’ve been out to the ballpark yet. As in baseball. As in Cubs and White Sox. Yeah, yeah, it’s still cold.
On to the polls:
Poll No. 1: The WNBA season is here, with the Sky as defending champs. Will you be paying closer attention to them than before?
Time again for our weekly “Polling Place” questions. Let us hear from you! Selected comments will appear in Saturday's paper.
— Chicago Sun-Times (@Suntimes) May 5, 2022
Q1: The WNBA season is here, with the Sky as defending champs. Will you be paying closer attention to them than before?
Upshot: Not sure if you noticed, pal, but pro sports championships don’t exactly grow on trees around here. The Bulls busted out in the first round. The Cubs, Blackhawks and Bears are miles away from contention. The Sky are a fun group of players who play an uptempo style and have, in Parker, a hometown success story that’s hard to top. So what’s the problem? Is it just a women’s sports thing? Don’t be that guy.
Poll No. 2: The Kentucky Derby is Saturday. Will you be watching?
Q2: The Kentucky Derby is Saturday. Will you be watching?
— Chicago Sun-Times (@Suntimes) May 5, 2022
Upshot: Some of the stronger entrants, according to reputation, are Zandon, Epicenter, Mo Donegal, White Abarrio and Taiba. There’s also Messier, which is pronounced, “I have no idea.” Look, some of us don’t know from the horses. We can appreciate the position of @RonaldVoigt4, who will be taking a pass: “I have about as much luck betting on the horses as the horses have betting on the stock market,” he wrote.
Poll No. 3: Have you been to a Cubs or White Sox game this season?
Q3: Have you been to a Cubs or White Sox game this season?
— Chicago Sun-Times (@Suntimes) May 5, 2022
Upshot: If nothing else, bad weather is a big, obvious factor. “I don’t like baseball in football weather,” @ChiSportsNut put it. And @ChiTownSports: “Not until it’s at least 70 degrees.” But, hey, it’s May! It’ll be sunny and warm any year now.
