Caitlin Clark, the Indiana Fever's rookie sensation, is lighting up the WNBA. She's leading the team to a 6-1 record and is a runaway favorite for Rookie of the Year. But is the league doing enough to support and promote her rising stardom?
Caitlin Clark is the WNBA's brightest young star. The Indiana Fever guard is averaging 18.1 points, 6.3 assists, and 4.1 rebounds per game, and she's leading her team to a surprising 6-1 record.
Is the WNBA Doing Enough to Support Caitlin Clark's Rising Stardom?
But is the WNBA doing enough to support and promote Clark's rising stardom?
Some critics say that the league is not doing enough to market Clark to a wider audience. They point out that the WNBA has not featured Clark on the cover of its magazine, "The W," and that she has not been featured in any major advertising campaigns.
Is the WNBA Doing Enough to Support Caitlin Clark's Rising Stardom?
Others argue that the WNBA is doing the best it can to promote Clark, given the resources it has. They point out that Clark has been featured in several articles and interviews in "The W," and that she has been a guest on several WNBA broadcasts.
Ultimately, it's up to the WNBA to decide how much effort it wants to put into promoting Caitlin Clark. But there's no doubt that she is a special player with the potential to be one of the faces of the league.
Is the WNBA Doing Enough to Support Caitlin Clark's Rising Stardom?
WNBA Hall of Famer Sheryl Swoopes has apologized for making inaccurate and insensitive comments about Caitlin Clark, the Indiana Fever rookie sensation.
In an appearance on "The Herd with Colin Cowherd" last February, Swoopes incorrectly stated that Clark had played five college seasons and averaged over 40 shots per game. She also suggested that Clark was older than her listed age.
Is the WNBA Doing Enough to Support Caitlin Clark's Rising Stardom?
Swoopes has since apologized to Clark and has taken responsibility for her mistakes.
"I absolutely take credit for saying the wrong things," Swoopes said in an X Spaces event on Tuesday. "I don't owe you all an apology, but I do owe Caitlin an apology."
Swoopes said that she was confused about Clark's college career due to the COVID-19 pandemic, which disrupted the 2020-21 college basketball season.
"With COVID and all of those things, I thought, honest mistake but maybe I'm not allowed to make those, I thought it was Caitlin's fifth year," Swoopes said. "So the producer of the show looked it up and said 'no it was her fourth year' on the show ... I said ' you know what, if it is her fourth year and she breaks the record then great, it's a legitimate record.'"
Swoopes also said that her comments about Clark's age were taken out of context.
"I don't know if people understand Hyperbole," Swoopes said. "With the COVID year, you have older people, men and women, playing against younger people because of the COVID year and you get an extra year, so there may be people who are 23 and 24 ... so I made that statement but it wasn't me saying 'yeah well Caitlin is 25 playing against 22 year olds.'"
Swoopes said that she is still friends with Clark and that she is proud of what she has accomplished in her young career.
"I think Caitlin is a great player," Swoopes said. "I think she has a very bright future. I'm excited to see what she can do in the WNBA."
Nancy Lieberman, another WNBA Hall of Famer, has said that her relationship with Sheryl Swoopes is "pretty much done" due to a recent argument about Swoopes' incorrect statements about Caitlin Clark.
In an appearance on "The Stephen A. Smith Show," Lieberman said that she called Swoopes to discuss her comments about Clark, but that Swoopes got upset and the conversation ended abruptly.
"I called her as a friend and I said, 'You can say whatever you want ... but you do have to get the statistics right. I mean, facts matter," Lieberman said. "She got upset with me on the phone, and I was like, 'Sheryl, I’m not doing anything to hurt you.' ... So, our relationship pretty much is not happening at this point. I tried to talk to her at the Final Four, she didn’t want to talk to me. My life is going to be good or great with or without Sheryl Swoopes in my life. I’d rather have her in it."
Swoopes has responded to Lieberman's comments, saying that her life "was better" without Lieberman.
"Don't say you called me to talk about that when you didn't," Swoopes said. "You posted that on Twitter and then I responded to you, I texted you, and said 'Nancy if you have something to say, call me, since we’re supposed to be, quote, friends.'"
It is unclear whether Swoopes and Lieberman will be able to repair their relationship. But it is clear that the disagreement over Swoopes' comments about Clark has put a strain on their friendship
