CHICAGO (WLS) — In an exciting collaboration, the WNBA All-Star Host Committee and the Chicago Park District have come together to introduce the city’s inaugural WNBA “Line ‘Em Up” community basketball court. The court features a distinctive fire orange 3-point line, synonymous with the WNBA.
This vibrant orange line is more than just a design element; it serves as a symbol of inclusion, encouraging young girls across Chicago to claim their space on the basketball court.
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“I’ve never seen anything like this on a public court before,” remarked Beautiful Pearson, a local high school student, expressing her surprise and excitement.
“It’s impressive,” added Michael Lindsey from the Chicago Park District. “If you consistently make shots from beyond the arc, you’re literally and figuratively on fire.”
Located at Hamilton Park in Englewood, the eye-catching orange 3-point line is a rare sight, but the Chicago Sky hopes that it will soon become a common feature across the city.
Reflecting on past experiences, former Chicago Sky player Linnae Harper noted, “We didn’t have these lines. Sometimes, we didn’t even have nets on the hoops.”
Growing up on Chicago’s South Side, former Sky guard Harper says she used to write in her journal that one day she’d play professional basketball, at a time when pathways in the sport were mostly built for boys.
“Growing up, I only played with all boys. I was the only girl on my team,” Harper said.
Now, more than two decades later, the Whitney Young grad is seeing something she never had as a kid: a WNBA 3-point line on a public court.
“If I can make a shot from the WNBA line at that age, then I can make it anywhere in life,” Harper said.
It’s all part of the WNBA’s “Line ‘Em Up” campaign, a push to make women’s professional courts visible in neighborhoods across the country.
“When you often go out and play at the courts that are around your house or in your neighborhoods, you have a 3-point line that’s for the high schoolers or the NBA men’s professional sport. But what about the women?” Chicago Sky co-owner Nadia Rawlinson said.
While there are tens of thousands of park courts across the country, the league says less than 1 percent currently have a WNBA 3-point line.
In Chicago alone, the park district says more than 3,700 girls participate in its basketball programs.
“Not only is gonna help your game, like, tactically, like the inspiration, the feeling of like this is for me. Like, I matter; like, I can do this,” former Chicago Sky player Allie Quigley said.
And while the WNBA and the players’ union continue negotiations ahead of the upcoming season, the Sky says this moment is about something bigger: building the next generation of leaders.
“It’s not just to be a star athlete; it’s not just to be a WNBA player. But it’s to be a leader. It’s to be a CEO. It’s to be a boss, and this is your chance to show it just first here on the court,” Rawlison said.
The fire orange line is just the first of the hundreds to come that the Chicago Sky is planning across park district courts.
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