When Cleveland's WNBA team takes the court in 2028, it will enter a league vastly different from the one the Rockers unceremoniously exited in 2003.

Why it matters: This time around, the yet-to-be-named team — along with forthcoming expansion teams in Toronto, Portland, Detroit and Philadelphia — can expect a larger fan base, bigger paychecks and brighter spotlights.

The big picture: Ownership groups in Cleveland, Detroit and Philadelphia each ponied up $250 million to secure expansion teams announced last month, record-breaking sums that speak to the explosive growth of a league that was once a backwater and a laughingstock.

• It's now the hottest brand in pro sports.

Driving the news: This weekend's WNBA All-Star Game will feature Indiana Fever superstar Caitlin Clark — one of the biggest reasons for the league's surging popularity — captaining a team on her home court, though she is questionable to play after an injury Tuesday.

• The 18,000-seat Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis sold out within hours.

Flashback: In 2003, the Cleveland Rockers' average attendance was 7,400 per game, a stat juiced by discounted and complimentary tickets.

• The Rockers were one of the WNBA's eight charter franchises, but failed to turn a profit in each of its seven seasons.
• Team owner Gordon Gund, who also owned the NBA's Cavaliers, cut ties shortly after that season, and the team folded when Gund and the WNBA were unable to find local investors to assume ownership.

Between the lines: Gund was not alone. The WNBA had surfed a cresting wave of enthusiasm for women's sports after the 1996 Atlanta Olympics, but for years was unable to capture sports fans' sustained attention and spending power.

• Even the dynastic Houston Comets, who won the WNBA's first four championships, couldn't attract investors at an asking price of $12 million after the league took over the team in 2007.
• It folded a year later, to the dismay of its former stars.

Fast forward: The landscape couldn't be more different today, as the WNBA monetizes the success of magnetic college superstars like Clark, Angel Reese and Paige Bueckers. It's now the fifth-most popular league nationwide, behind only the men's big four leagues: the NFL, NBA, MLB and NHL.

• Last year, the WNBA signed a lucrative media rights deal that will reportedly net it $200 million per year.

Zoom in: Cavaliers CEO Nic Barlage told reporters in a press conference last week that the record-setting 2024 Women's Final Four in Cleveland was a good sign that the city was ready for a WNBA franchise.

• "Every key performance indicator we've looked at over the last three years has this trajectory that you haven't seen in and around a sports asset in quite some time," he said.

What's next...

For the second consecutive year, Indianapolis is hosting WNBA All-Star week festivities.

Why it matters: It's a five-hour drive from Cleveland, perfect for a long-weekend trip.

• Resale tickets are still available.

🍤 Zoom in: Here are some of the top spots to dine near the All-Star action, according to our colleagues in Indy.

• Astrea, Indy's newest rooftop bar that's just blocks from Gainbridge Fieldhouse.
• Commission Row, the bougie Steakhouse loved by Charles Barkley, is perfect for Sunday brunch.
• St. Elmo Steak House in an Indianapolis institution. You can get a taste without breaking the bank during happy hour.
• Café Patachou is another institution, but for lunch. There is a downtown location just steps from the action, but there's a newer location with better vibes a mile north.

Go deeper: The complete guide to WNBA All-Star week in Indianapolis

🚌 A Cleveland artist is transforming a 1947 Greyhound bus that he salvaged from a Pennsylvania junkyard into a traveling Museum of the Great Migration. (ARTnews)

💸 Cleveland City Hall has submitted claims on nearly $138,000 in unclaimed funds — the pool of dormant money owed to Ohioans that the state is tapping to pay for pro stadiums. (Signal Cleveland)

🪪 Ohioans will need to submit a photo ID to watch pornography beginning this fall, thanks to a new provision in the state budget.

• PornHub, the country's most popular adult content website, has signaled it may pull out of the state as a result. (News5)

⚖️ The witnesses that prosecutors called this week in the trial against Antoine Tolbert may have done more to help the defense. (Ideastream)

🏍️ Mini Moto Night

If you like small bikes and you cannot lie, the Crawford Auto-Aviation Museum on East Boulevard is hosting a night dedicated to small motorcycles.

• The event begins at 5pm; admission is $10.

☘️ Irish Cultural Festival

This year's fest runs tomorrow through Sunday at the Cuyahoga County Fairgrounds, featuring live music, food, beer and sports. Tickets are $20 per day.

🌭 Guardians vs. Athletics

Cleveland looks to turn its season around starting with a three-game series against the lowly Athletics beginning tomorrow.

• Tickets start at $20.

🫠 Summer Meltdown

Lakewood's annual summer street party offers food, drinks and live music for the adults and sprinklers galore to cool off the kids. Admission is free.

Tens of thousands of people are expected to protest the Trump administration again today, on the fifth anniversary of the death of civil rights leader and former congressman John Lewis.

Flashback: Lewis was one of the most vocal critics of President Trump during his first administration.

• He skipped Trump's 2017 inauguration — only the second Lewis missed during his three-decade tenure in Congress including former President George W. Bush's inauguration in 2001.

Zoom in: Local events are scheduled throughout Northeast Ohio, including one at 5:30pm at Cleveland's Market Square Park.

• Other events are taking place in Avon, Mentor, Chagrin Falls and Akron.

Go deeper: What to know about "Good Trouble Lives On" protests