A 38 year-old Indianapolis
man is suing the Women’s National Basketball Association for the league’s
refusal to allow him to tryout for the Indiana Fever, the league’s
Indianapolis-based franchise.
John Massie, a forklift
driver for a local Home Depot, claims his civil rights were violated when the
WNBA refused him a tryout. David Isaacs, Massie’s lawyer, says the refusal is a
violation of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. “Section 703 of the act states it is
against the law to fail or refuse to hire an individual because of his or her
race, color, religion, sex, or national origin. The only reason Mr. Massie was
refused a tryout was because of his sex. The WNBA clearly violated Mr. Massie’s
rights, and if they do not allow a tryout, they can expect to pay him a
considerable settlement.”
WNBA commissioner Val
Ackerman refused to comment on the matter when contacted by THG. The league is
expected to fight Massie in court over keeping the league female-only.
Apparently the 5-foot-9
Massie got the idea to try out for the Fever after taking his 12 year-old
daughter to a game last season. “I was a reserve on my high school basketball
team and hadn’t touched a basketball in probably 15 years, but after seeing the
quality of basketball in the WNBA, I decided to tryout. I would compare the
competition to 7th grade boys’ basketball. I see it as an easy way
to make forty grand by working a couple hours a day. I have been shooting
around the last couple of months at the YMCA to get ready for the season.”
Legal experts are not
optimistic that Massie will win his lawsuit. Massie is a white male, and will
not receive the special treatment a minority or female would if the
circumstances were reversed. “I guarantee if a woman wanted to try out for the
NBA, they would let her without batting an eye,” said Issacs.
Added Massie, “I really
don’t understand why the WNBA is making such a big fuss about letting me
tryout. I bet half those so-called girls on the team have bigger schlongs than
I’ve got.”
The case is set to go to
federal court April 2, just over a month before the WNBA season starts.
