WNBA told ‘historically embarassing’ Caitlin Clark narrative will haunt league

Caitlin Clark may not be the very best player in the WNBA right now, but she is certainly the most-talked about.

The Indiana Fever superstar has had the spotlight on her from day one, going back to her collegiate days playing for the Iowa Hawkeyes.

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Clark’s arrival into the WNBA as the No. 1 overall pick in 2024 also coincided with the huge surge in the popularity of women’s basketball, with the phenomenon dubbed the “Caitlin Clark effect.”

But with all the attention that comes with her name just being mentioned, so does the added scrutiny.

Some have even argued that it has spilled over onto the court in the way that she is perhaps officiated differently by referees in contrast to her opponents.

It is something she has not asked for, but it has followed her, just as she never asked to be the face of the league.

The reality is, though, the WNBA have cashed in on Clark’s marketability, and with the ‘culture wars’ that inadvertently come alongside that, it is the 24-year-old who appears to pay the price.

Ahead of the WNBA All-Star Game, USA Today columnist Nancy Armour decided that it was appropriate to compare Clark embellishing contact on the court to the 1955 lynching of Emmett Till.

As expected Armour received a torrent of criticism, not only from fans but from mainstream voices in the media, forcing her to address her written words with a follow-up statement.

Although she later apologized for providing what she called a ‘lack of appropriate context’, she doubled down on her views, citing that her “point stands.”

Jemele Hill jumps to Clark’s support, criticizes WNBA’s handling of her

As Clark continues to find herself the center of attention – unwanted or otherwise – respected sports commentator and host of the Spolitics podcast Jemele Hill has come out in support of the Fever guard.

“I feel a lot of empathy for her, just because there’s so much of this she did not ask for,” Hill said during an appearance on The Awful Announcing Podcast on Thursday.

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“She didn’t ask to be some kind of bat signal for a culture war.

“She certainly didn’t ask for the group of fans — which I believe are not the majority — the group of fans that have decided that she’s going to be their vessel to get off as much racism as they possibly can. …

“Anything that happens with Caitlin Clark, it gives Fox [News] programming for six hours.”

Hill also directed criticism toward the WNBA itself, who have allowed, via their silence on certain issues, the narrative to build that Clark isn’t liked by other players in the league, and that they “want to hurt her.”

“This narrative that the media keeps drilling that the players don’t like her, that they’re jealous of her, that they want to hurt her, that is not the dominant perspective or feeling in the league,” Hill added.

“They’re just competing, and the fact that you’re villainizing people for just competing with her, it is something that will prove to be historically embarrassing by the way it has been discussed.”

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One recent example that Hill uses to further her explanation is how the WNBA handled the interaction between Clark and Alyssa Thomas at the end of June.

As Clark fell to the floor when diving for a loose ball, Thomas appeared to intentionally put her fist into her opponent’s neck.

Whilst no foul was called on the play at the time, the league retrospectively reviewed it and brandished the 13-year veteran with a one-game suspension, though failed to comment further on the matter.

In fact, that appears to be a common theme, with WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert having failed to show up for pre-agreed interviews, including an appearance on The Dan Patrick Show back in early July.

“It took Cathy Engelbert too long to get in front of a microphone,” Hill continued. “It didn’t even have to be The Dan Patrick Show.

“She should have been doing some type of media after the Alyssa Thomas incident happened. She needs to be out front more. Because that’s the way you help to control the narrative.

“At this point, it might be too late. But it would be really helpful if the commissioner didn’t disappear at the most critical moments.

“You should be able to get her on the phone and her help to shift and change the narrative.”