For better or worse, Caitlin Clark is the face of the league she plays in to a greater extent than any other active athlete anywhere. Consider this: in the WNBA’s 30th season, there have never been more teams or more games played in front of more fans–especially those who watch on television–than at any other point in its history. And those games are being seen on no less than FOUR national broadcast networks–which is twice as many as the good old NBA was seen on. And far and away any game she plays in draws a dramatically larger audience than any other. This bounty was the driving force in the record deal the players’ association finally reached in a dramatic off-season where at the last minute cooler heads finally prevailed and a potentially debilating strike might have derailed this from actually moving forward.
There are many who think that there should be nothing but immense gratitude for Clark for being the rising tide that has lifted all boats and allowed the more casual basketball fans–or even merely fans of talented women–to at least care enough to know who Alyssa Thomas is, let alone what she did earlier this week that has her cast as the biggest Mean Girl since Regina George. THE BIG LEAD’s Josh Sanchez reported on the end result yesterday:
The WNBA has responded to the backlash from a Wednesday night incident between Phoenix Mercury veteran Alyssa Thomas and Indiana Fever superstar Caitlin Clark. Thomas and Clark tangled it up on the court, with Thomas pushing her closed fist into Clark’s throat after driving her knee into Clark’s groin area…On Thursday afternoon, the league announced that Thomas has retroactively been assessed a Flagrant 2 foul and will be suspended for one game.
Making somewhat less of a dent in the national sports discourse was the fact that Clark–let alone a few other far lesser-known players–didn’t exactly get off scott-free. Fortunately, ATHLON Sports’ Ayomide Adeduyite had recapped those events the day before:
Indiana beat Phoenix 86-77 on Monday in a game that featured repeated fourth-quarter confrontations, six technical fouls and the ejection of Mercury guard Sami Whitcomb after she argued from the bench…Caitlin Clark was assessed one of those technicals after a late dust-up involving DeWanna Bonner, Alyssa Thomas, Sophie Cunningham and Myisha Hines-Allen. The Fever then lost the rematch 111-109 on Wednesday in another game dominated by controversy, with Clark taking multiple hard hits before leaving in the third quarter with a back injury. Per IndyStar’s Chloe Peterson, the WNBA declined to rescind Clark’s technical from Monday, meaning she remains at five technical fouls this season. That also means a $1,000 fine and leaves her three technicals away from the league’s automatic one-game suspension mark, which kicks in at eight.
But facts only matter so much these days, as the multi-acronymed SAM of MARCA attempted to girl-splain:
Within 24 hours, it had turned into another national argument about race, media coverage and the way the WNBA’s biggest star is treated…The latest Caitlin Clark controversy started with a missed call on the court. Within 24 hours, it had turned into another national argument about race, media coverage and the way the WNBA’s biggest star is treated. NFL analyst Bobby Burack clashed with former ESPN commentator Jemele Hill… Fever coach Stephanie White was furious afterward, saying: “We have a generational talent and a WNBA superstar who had two cheap shots right there that weren’t called.” The debate widened when former NFL quarterback Boomer Esiason suggested Clark should consider playing in Europe if the WNBA would not protect her. Hill pushed back on X, writing: “So is he implying that she should receive special treatment because she’s straight and white?”
The fact that Hill went yet again to a Joy Reid-like narrative to elevate her to relevance is almost forgivable considering that she is apparently challenging the degree of simmering jealousy and rage that exists among the league’s rank and file that continues to exist in a bubble where what they accomplished as “trailer-blazers” has never reached what they believe is anything close to the level of awareness and accolade that Clark has already received. One such example is Bonner, and her back story is both inspiring and juicy:
Bonner, a 16-year veteran and two-time WNBA champion, signed a one-year deal with the Fever expecting to be a starter and a key contributor. However, she came off the bench after three games, while younger players like Lexie Hull and Aaliyah Boston were elevated in the starting lineup. This shift limited her ability to make the impact she anticipated, which contributed to her dissatisfaction with the team dynamic and her role on the court…Bonner’s move to Indiana was partly motivated by proximity to her children from a previous marriage..Despite this, she struggled with being away from her partner, Alyssa Thomas, who signed with the Phoenix Mercury.
So no, Jemele, Clark should not receive “special treatment” for the reasons you gaslighted. But do try to tell us how this powderkeg wasn’t already simmering because Thomas felt a pressing need to stick up for her gal who been done wronged by what was perceived as a dissing by an ingrateful cadre of uppity bitches not seen since the Plastics?
Can we at least agree that this sort of dynamic doesn’t typically turn up in men’s professional sports leagues?
Perhaps Hill’s honed reporting skills might have been better showcased if she had at least tried to attack a concurrent story that emerged that has turned out to indeed be a crock. FITGURU’s Nicholas Ramirez was on the case earlier this morning:
Clark once again became the center of WNBA debate after fans discovered she was missing from the league’s official 30th-anniversary poster… The criticism spread rapidly across social media and major sports outlets. Several high-profile commentators questioned how the league could celebrate three decades of women’s basketball without featuring arguably its most recognizable active player. The discussion quickly evolved into claims that the WNBA was deliberately minimizing Clark’s impact on the sport.
Those assumptions began to unravel when a different explanation emerged. Sports business reporter Darren Rovell reported that Clark’s licensing agreements restrict the commercial use of her likeness. According to the report, companies producing merchandise such as the commemorative poster are permitted to use only her name and number—not her image—under the existing licensing arrangements.
Oh, snap. Facts that emerge as inconvenient truths do have a way of getting in the way of things, don’t they?
It’s mind-boggling that what amounts to a diss more than a year earlier may have been the stray match that lit this particular dumpster fire of a story and yet again took the spotlight away from the games themselves. Not to mention the fact that Clark’s play so far this year still hasn’t lifted her Fever to much more than the middle of the league’s pack as the season approaches its midpoint. And with her being ruled out for tonight’s nationally televised showcase with the equally struggling but nonetheless top market LA Sparks the chances of improving that sich–and the year-to-date viewership average–diminished greatly as a result of Thomas’ “gallantry”. Frankly, on an otherwise slow sports night I for one was looking forward to it. Yeah, Jemele, sometimes it’s the game itself that matters.
“Shut up and dribble” is a wish that carries unfortunate connotations and associations that could reignite distracting discourse that I’m honestly more than a little done with. But I do look forward to when that actually happens so even we non-social justice warriors can sit back and enjoy the damn game.
Courage…