Your quote doesn’t really indicate that there’s not a boom. It just indicates that WNBA is still not as popular as the NBA.
There’s been a substantial increase in viewership.
Across ABC, ESPN, ESPN2, CBS, ION and NBA TV, WNBA games are averaging 1.32 million viewers, nearly tripling last season’s average of 462,000, the league said Tuesday.
Nowhere in the article to they support the claim that WNBA popularity is booming with any data.
The only statement that comes close is:
Doesn’t sound like a boom.
Article on archive.org https://archive.ph/6dE7Q
Your quote doesn’t really indicate that there’s not a boom. It just indicates that WNBA is still not as popular as the NBA.
There’s been a substantial increase in viewership.
https://www.espn.com/wnba/story/_/id/40326422/wnba-earns-record-tv-ratings-1st-month-record-attendance