According to varsity boys basketball player sophomore Rylan See, this event was the first coeducational professional basketball competition hosted by the NBA and WNBA.

“Even though Sabrina lost, it was exciting to watch, as we got to see the best shooters from both the NBA and WNBA duel it out for the first time,” he said.

According to See, Ionescu’s ability to score at a similar level to contestants from the men-only 3-point contest is encouraging.

“(Ionescu) actually tied Damian Lillard’s score, who was the (men’s) 3-point champion this year,” he said. “(She) showed that she was able to shoot the ball just as well as the best shooter in the world, which will encourage more girls to play.”

The showdown drew 5.4 million viewers, making it the most-viewed competition during All-Star Saturday Night. According to varsity girls basketball player sophomore Lena Duggan, the contest’s popularity — combined with Curry’s — improves the WNBA’s outreach.

“People love to see Steph Curry, so seeing him associated with a WNBA player will likely bring more attention to the WNBA,” she said.

Boys junior varsity basketball coach Matt Passell hopes that Ionescu’s performance will help audiences better recognize WNBA players’ skills.

“Hopefully, other events like this — where you have good competition between men and women — (will make it) so that the people who wouldn’t tune into a women’s basketball contest get to see how talented they are,” he said.

Duggan echoed how the contest garners not only more attention but more regard for women’s basketball.

“It shows that the WNBA should be respected more because the best shooter in the NBA was competing against one of the best WNBA shooters,” she said. “This brings more attention to the talent that the WNBA has.”

PC graphics by Jesse Li

“This word, specifically, has not evolved,” he said. “(When it is used,) we know that you want to associate ‘gay’ with femininity.”

According to Gender-Sexuality Alliance President senior Chania Rene-Corail, expressions like these also stigmatize the LGBTQ+ community.

“Saying the phrase, ‘That’s so gay,’ can make members of the (LGBTQ+) community feel ashamed of being queer, and it makes (Gunn) much more of a hostile environment,” she said.

These words also make students who are discovering their identity feel ashamed of themselves and afraid to openly join the LGBTQ+ community.

“When you are a young person trying to come out and you see that people around you aren’t that supportive of it, that makes you not want to come out of the closet,” Rene-Corail said. “You just stay stuck in that situation where you can’t openly be who you are.”

Rene-Corail said this phenomenon affected her personally in middle school.

“People at my old middle school used the word ‘gay’ a lot, which made it hard for me to come out,” she said.

Students who use these phrases also prevent the formation of meaningful relationships, alienating potential friends.

“I’ve had a lot of people in my life who were like, ‘Oh, that’s a red flag about (him),’ and I should be on alert,” Murase said.

According to Murase, the phrase also reflects badly upon the user, making them seem childish for attempting to represent something “girly” or silly as “gay.”

“If you want to say something is stupid, don’t relate it to sexuality,” Murase said.

According to Rene-Corail, many students are simply ignorant of the phrase’s connotations. Thus, raising awareness is the first step in changing the conventional image of the LGBTQ+ community.

“A lot of the time, it’s used to not actively be mean, but as an ignorant statement,” Rene-Corail said. “What I’ve gotten from listening (to others’ experiences) is that it’s not about people being mean, it’s about not knowing of the negative effect on others and not knowing that it might make others feel embarrassed.”