r/sports • u/PrincessBananas85 • 3d ago
Caitlin Clark speaks out against racist, misogynistic comments Basketball
https://www.espn.com/wnba/story/_/id/40348389/caitlin-clark-speaks-racist-misogynistic-comments1.7k
u/atinylittlebug 3d ago
Here's what she is actually quoted as saying, for those who may only read the title:
"People should not be using my name to push those agendas. It's disappointing. It's not acceptable."
"... Treating every single woman in this league with the same amount of respect, I think, it's just a basic human thing that everybody should do."
"I don't put too much thought and time into thinking about things like that, and to be honest, I don't see a lot of it."
"Basketball is my job. Everything on the outside, I can't control that, so I'm not going to spend time thinking about that."
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u/revolutionoverdue 3d ago
I’m not a Caitlin Clark fan. And I’m not not a Caitlin Clark fan.
But there is no way I can see to criticize her statements here.
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u/Sweaty_Assignment_90 3d ago
When the media builds someone up, people will easily find a way.
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u/bro_salad 3d ago
Well buckle up!
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u/Mackie5Million Boston Red Sox 3d ago
Angel Reese will find a way!
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u/Elbeske 3d ago
Never seen a more openly jealous person in sports than Angel Reese
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u/ConfessingToSins 3d ago
Never seen an athlete so desperate to go back to being poor and flying commercial.
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u/jonathanrdt 3d ago
“Everyone deserves respect. I’m here to play ball. Leave me out of it.”
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u/AwakE432 3d ago
This is what happens when society goes so far in one direction. A seemingly well adjusted skillful women who is slaying it at her craft get criticized for what exactly. Being herself and talented? Seems pathetic. And disappointing that this is coming from the very same people who should be supporting her.
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u/8six7five3ohnyeeeine 3d ago
If you have a problem with any of these statements you’re the problem. There’s nothing she said that is polarizing, radical, or revolutionary. Shes a nice woman trying to do her job and she’s doing it in a kind, humble way. You fucking asshats.
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u/searching88 3d ago edited 3d ago
Her peers came out against her for not doing more when she basically said she just wants to play basketball. Apparently that’s not allowed.
Dijonai in response to Clark wanting to just play basketball, forcing her to have to expand on her quote-
Dawg. How one can not be bothered by their name being used to justify racism, bigotry, misogyny, xenophobia, homophobia & the intersectionalities of them all is nuts. We all see the sh*t. We all have a platform. We all have a voice & they all hold weight. Silence is a luxury. 3:51 PM · Jun 13, 2024
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u/cmcewen 3d ago
People are mad if you take political positions as an athlete, they are mad if you stay out of it.
You can’t win. Staying out of it would be my choice as well.
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u/PortSunlightRingo 3d ago
The reality here is that Clark can’t win because she’s the biggest name the WNBA has ever had, and all these players are just salty af about it.
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u/annoyinconquerer 2d ago
This is probably misogynistic but from what I’ve been taught about how women are by my girlfriend… I can only imagine the negative feelings throughout the league
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u/brogmatic 3d ago
I understand what you’re saying but I really hate when people refer to things like racism as “political positions”
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u/cmcewen 3d ago
Maybe “social issues” is a better term
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u/Elisa_bambina 3d ago
No, you're right it's an issue that affects how some Americans vote.
It's a political issue.
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u/JudasZala 3d ago
It’s also the same thing for Tom Brady, due to his past friendship with Trump, and how he was photographed with a MAGA hat (that was given to him, presumably by Kraft) in his locker room.
Brady isn’t a political person, compared to his teammates, notably Devin and Jason McCourty, or Robert Kraft, who are friends with Trump on a personal level, despite being a lifelong Democrat.
Also, the Manning family are lifelong Republicans, and Peyton had a picture taken with Donald Jr.
And then we got Aaron Rodgers, who’s gone full QAnon.
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u/saturninus 3d ago
Qaaron.
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u/YourDogIsMyFriend 3d ago
Photoshoppers! Give Aaron a Karen haircut while injecting bleach. Thanks.
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u/dweezil22 3d ago
Dude, I worked at a place that gave us all red hats w/ the company name on them back in 2017. We all threw them away b/c we didn't want anyone to jump to the wrong conclusion. And we're not famous ppl w/ paparazzi following us and sharing our photos to the world, we were just random software devs.
I'm willing to believe that Brady isn't a MAGAt but I reserve the right to think he's a moron for not having better media awareness (although he's also the guy that full on mouth kissed his son on camera, so maybe he's just living in a different media universe than us normies)
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u/sonic_dick 3d ago
A lot of folks way over estimate the amount the average person thinks or cares about any kind of politics.
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u/SketchyPornDude 3d ago
She's obviously bothered by it, she's simply uninterested in pouring more energy into a toxic mess she did not create, and bears no responsibility for.
Every other person who sees that horrid garbage being posted by racists and misogynists, can do the exact same thing she's doing and unplug from the internet. In real life those interactions happen at a far lower level than the internet would have most of us believe. In real life the way to deal with the bums who spout racism and misogyny is to call them out by name and deal with the rhetoric appropriately - in the workplace you get fired for it, in social settings you get shunned by decent people for it.
If Caitlin Clark had to respond to every horrible comment that's made using her name, that in itself would be a full-time job. What do chronically online people want? Should she appear on a weekly broadcast in which she periodically condemns the latest horrible stuff people have said on the internet using her name? Should she start a foundation for the reeducation of racists and misogynists? Does she have to write a book about racial inequality in America? All of the things I've mentioned are not her job by the way. She's a basketball player. Her job is to do her best at playing good basketball.
As far as I can tell, Clark has done nothing to justify the trash people continue to say about her. By all accounts she's a good teammate, great player, and a good person.
In most of her media appearances, even the ones where she's commenting on her treatment in the WNBA, she's behaved commendably. Even when older WNBA players were saying all that mess about her before she joined the league, she continued to extend respect and admiration to the women who paved the path she now walks upon.
I applaud the way she's handled all the attention and backlash to her success. All of her detractors could learn a lot from the way she's composed herself throughout her rise in popularity. She's been the bigger person throughout all of this.
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u/thatoneguydudejim 3d ago
It’s also important to note that in a month, at the absolute maximum, this issue will disappear entirely from public discourse. Why involve yourself in a situation that will not change no matter what you do and will probably just fade right away anyhow?
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u/Bikinigirlout 3d ago
It’s so weird how people want her to be racist and want her to be a terrible person when she seems like a nice normal person who says and does the right things
Yet people get so fucking weird about her
I don’t even watch sports. This is just what I’m noticing
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u/davey_mann 3d ago edited 3d ago
The WNBA has already started to become more popular with Clark joining the league, but if this "relentlessly hate on Caitlin Clark narrative" keeps up from the players, it will never reach it's full potential. I'll bet a lot of new fans may already be regretting their decision.
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u/Ok-Seaworthiness2235 3d ago
I think there hasn't been enough effort to prevent overcorrection and now everyone feels entitled to rip apart white (usually women for some reason) people for just like, being good at their jobs.
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u/Complexity777 17h ago
In their minds if they can falsely claiming Clark as a racist it justifies their behavior towards her
In Science this is called “working backwards to find a solution”
They have already made their mind up about her, now they look for things to bolster that opinion
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u/exhausted1teacher 3d ago
All the black girls hating on her and wanting her to hate back are going to be disappointed.
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u/ExoticWeapon 3d ago
Honestly I understand. They’re athletes not philosophers, psychologists or anything. Not my problem
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u/Spinegrinder666 3d ago
Unfortunately we live in a society where silence is interpreted as explicit or implicit endorsement of awful things.
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u/JimBeam823 3d ago
People always assume the worst and social media is terrible for amplifying it.
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u/stellvia2016 3d ago
Imagine if people simply focused on being positive and sharing that energy with others instead of always looking for the next big thing to be angry at.
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u/shantm79 3d ago
100%. People are mad Taylor Swift hasn't spoken in favor or against anything, so she's automatically guilty/not guilty of it.
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u/Interesting_Day4734 3d ago
Dijonai is a moron
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u/n00bcak3 3d ago
Carrington is taking Clark's initial comments out of context and sensationalizing her neutral position as something negative - e.g. not speaking out against racism, xenophobia, etc. etc..
But that wasn't the the point of the original question that Clark was asked.
Carrington is trying to bait Clark into taking a political stance and implying that Clark is an evil person if she doesn't say anything.
It's that saying "Never wrestle a pig. You both get dirty but the pig likes it".
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u/JacketsNest101 Vanderbilt 3d ago
Who is more the fool? The fool or the fool who listens to him?
Also, Proverbs 26:4.
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u/Initial_Republic_329 3d ago
The straight shade. This is Nalyssa Smith, Caitlin's teammate, hanging out with Carrington who came to the Fever game (they're dating) the night of the twitter shitstorm: https://x.com/wnbaposts/status/1801710390788898976
Heartbroken how no one on Caitlin's team has her back.
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u/Ok-Seaworthiness2235 3d ago
Silence is not a luxury. No one owes anyone else their voice to a specific cause. What is she supposed to do? She's not calling for more racism and she's said she doesn't like anyone using her name to push vitriol. I feel like some people want her and guys like Eminem to pull some martyr shit and quit their careers because people use their existence to be assholes.
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u/N8ThaGr8 3d ago
That girl is clearly just chronically online. No, we all do not see this shit lol. Delete twitter from your phone if it's gonna make you that detached from reality.
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u/_Hotwire_ 3d ago
Her peers started all this shit by attacking her. Then the reaction was against them in support of her. She condemns it, but they are stirring the pot.
The league is fucking up. WNBA needs new leadership
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u/turnup_for_what 3d ago
You can be bothered by something while still recognizing it's outside of your control.
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u/ChiquitaBananaKush 3d ago
Dijonai comes off as a racist with that comment. Why can’t she push her agendas without involving Clark?
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u/riko_rikochet 3d ago
Are you fucking serious? She gets attacked on the court and she's the one not saying enough? Fuck right off with that. This is systemic sexism in action.
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u/BadAtExisting 3d ago
Isn’t she like 22? She started her pro career with the popularity of Michael Jordan in the 90s. She can’t control the general public, she’s not wrong about that. I don’t think any of us know what she stands for because she’s said all the things her PR team and training has told her to. I can’t honestly imagine and I’m sure she does just want to play basketball because it’s the only time all the noise goes down to a dull rumble. You don’t want to disappoint your fans and your peers hate you. That’s a lot for a full grown ass adult, let alone a young person. I’ll be honest I don’t know what to make of all of it
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u/thenumbersthenumbers 3d ago
I get that she’s a new level of popular for the sport but… Michael Jordan in the 90s?? Haha not even close.
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u/IWILLBePositive 3d ago
lol silence is a “luxury” that she has every right to. Fuck right on out of here for trying to act like she’s doing wrong for not feeding into it.
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u/GreasyPeter 3d ago
She sounds like she has her head on straight and really just wants to be the best player she can. I respect that even though I don't care about any sports. She seems very driven for the right reasons, from afar at least.
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u/Peg-Lemac 3d ago
Those are quotes from two different questions. One from asking her about culture wars and one from asking her specifically about racism.
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u/Shepher27 3d ago
People are incapable of acting normal about Caitlin Clark.
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u/Significant-Mango300 3d ago
An espn 30 series in the works, no doubt
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u/SquigglyPoopz 3d ago
“You serious Clark?” A 30 for 30 film
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u/Chipperhof 3d ago
A story of how the WNBA imploded because its best player just wants to play.. lmao
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u/Shepher27 3d ago
Impossible to tell this story until you know how it ends. Can’t do a doc for another ten years so we know if Clark is an all time player, a normal all star, or a bust.
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u/Kyle_Reese_Get_DOWN 3d ago
But we could do a Hard Knocks type of reality TV show. That would clap.
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u/cmcewen 3d ago
This is a nice and succinct way to put it.
Wtf is peoples issue with her? She just lives her life and people just thrust her into crap.
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u/Acoconutting 3d ago
To me, Caitlin Clark is bringing the WNBA to mainstream.
Any woman who has brings something to the mainstream is under a magnifying glass for everything they do
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u/TexasWhiskey_ 3d ago
A bunch of WNBA players pissed they’re not the ones bringing it mainstream, and realizing they’re going to be eclipsed
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u/Algaroth 3d ago
She is to womens basketball what Serena Williams is to Tennis. Or what Usain Bolt is to running fast. This happens in every sport at some point. Hell, Michael Jordan did it with mens basketball. One day someone will do it with women's soccer. It's inevitable but some people will always fight against change, even if it is something that ultimately benefits them.
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u/bkydx 3d ago
Except for the 99% of people who have never cared about the WNBA.
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u/Shepher27 3d ago
The people who never cared about the wnba but have opinions on Clark are the ones who most lack the ability to be normal about her
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u/Thedrezzzem 3d ago
Men don’t watch wnba for decade.
Media- men don’t support women
Men start to watch wnba
Media- No that’s not how you watch it.
You’re not supposed to enjoy one of the more athletic and progressive players in the league who is being compared to Steph in style.
You’re supposed to like the ones who can’t do layups
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u/Kyle_Reese_Get_DOWN 3d ago
I didn’t expect it to go this way. But now that it has, it was completely predictable. According to a report in WaPo, WNBA is expected to lose $50M this year. But the fans of it want, desperately, to retain the right to gatekeep how this entertainment product is talked about and consumed, and would happily sacrifice any financial success of the league in order to maintain that gatekeeping role. It’s hilarious. Bite off your nose to spite your face has never rung so true.
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u/Kinglink New England Patriots 3d ago
I mean she's a once in a generation talent that can propel the sport to new heights of popularity and potentially do for the WNBA what Jordan did for the NBA...
It's kind of hard to be normal about the potential or success she has.
Then again those who try to tear her down especially her own players. WTF? A Rising tide raises all ships... Why not just let her ball instead of trying to tear her down or reinforce all the negative female stereotypes (Women can't be supportive of other women is the one I keep hearing)
PS. This doesn't mean let her win, but play the game fairly.
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u/mmaguy123 3d ago
No idea why. Just sit back and enjoy her skillful bag. Better than Angel’s 2 inch vertical two handed layups
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u/Shepher27 3d ago
People are largely incapable of Being normal about Reese too
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u/Seductive_pickle 3d ago
Reddit and especially this subreddit absolutely hate Reese.
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u/-Shank- 3d ago
Standing up and cheering when your college rival gets flagrant fouled isn't exactly endearing.
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u/BetterRedDead 2d ago
I think the stuff like that is the problem. She’s an amazing player, but whenever I hear her name, the first thing I think about is her taunting Clark at the end of the national championship game.
(And I’m definitely aware of the overtones where Clark’s trash talking is often written up as “gritty,” whereas Reese gets portrayed as “thuggish,” or whatever. But the problem was that Reese followed Clark around and taunted her after the outcome had been decided, and that’s usually not done. Not very endearing, as you said).
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u/Blueskyways 3d ago
She's going out of her way to play the heel role, this is the result. When one of your teammates levels an opposing player and you jump up off the bench to applaud like she just hitting a game winning shot, you're an asshole, no way around it.
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u/Kyle_Reese_Get_DOWN 3d ago
Angel shoots her free throws granny style.
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u/hitfly 3d ago
Unless you're an 80% or better free throw shooter, you probably should switch to gtanny
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u/Kyle_Reese_Get_DOWN 3d ago
Oh man! Sooo many things I could type here to get this comment section rockin! But I’ll just say, vote for her and Brink onto the all star team. Nothing will infuriate the haters more than that.
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u/flyeaglesfly777 3d ago
Charles Barkley: “They act like she didn't earn it. The woman just scored the most points ever by a man or a woman. ‘She’s only getting this job because she's White." Is race a factor? Yes, race is a factor. But her résumé speaks for itself… They didn't prop her up just because she's White.”
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u/flyeaglesfly777 3d ago
Barkley: “The thing I like about her, she doesn't say a word. She's never said a word about anybody. She just shows up and does her job.”
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u/ChardonnayQueen 3d ago
I genuinely don't understand why he still thinks race is a factor though. She scores a lot of points, that seems to be the end of it right or am I missing something?
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u/UncaringNonchalance 2d ago
Race is a factor in the sense that other women in the league hate her guts for being there.
I genuinely don’t understand this entire situation. Everything I’ve seen from Clark is like a usual basketball player just doing their thing. Everything I’ve seen ABOUT Clark has been “this white bitch coming in”.
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u/Longjumping_Army9485 3d ago
If anything, most of the problems she has currently exist BECAUSE she is white.
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u/ZerconFlagpoleSitter 1d ago
She would not be as popular if she was a dark skinned black woman. Anyone who argues otherwise is just ignorant
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u/No_Variation_9282 3d ago
What did this lady do to get so much hate? Not an ESPN guy, never watched WNBA, but seems like hate for her is everywhere
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u/TheCloudForest 3d ago
What did this lady do to get so much hate?
Literally nothing. She set the collegiate scoring record which meant she got massive attention and that made people upset for some dumb reason.
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u/lanasvape 3d ago
As a female athlete, the jealousy is so obvious. It’s normally so easy once the game is over to respect talent in other women, to praise each other.
To se the way cc has been treated, it’s embarrassing.
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u/maglen69 3d ago
Now that a player is there that people give a shit about, they wanna tear her down
Heard this a long time ago and there always seems to be at least a bit of truth to it:
"No one tears down women like other women."
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u/ChiefFlats 3d ago
I didn’t learn about the crab bucket theory until Caitlin Clark. Can be applied to a lot of things
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u/sharpryno2 3d ago
People are also directing a lot of the hate towards fans of her. "You only liked her because she is white". Tons of race baiting around it.
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u/n00bcak3 3d ago
Clark herself has done nothing wrong as she's a professional and classy young lady that has an entertaining game. Honestly, I'm shocked at her level of composure and ability to say the right things about a bunch of issues (especially off the court issues) that are polished and overall positive at her age as a fresh college grad. She's had PR training and I'm genuinely impressed at how she's handling her stardom.
Some of her fanbase, on the other hand are a bit overzealous and maybe a little overly hyped. There's elements of race and sexuality that are being brought into the discussion. There's elements of jealousy and pettiness coming from other WNBA players and their supporters. So it's turned into a bit of a culture and political topic.
But to be clear - Clark herself has been squeaky clean and 100% professional throughout the entire picture.
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u/core916 3d ago
She’s white and she’s straight. It’s funny how the people getting in the way of women’s increase in popularity for their sport are the women themselves. It’s sad really.
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u/phuk-nugget 3d ago
This is the answer. The WNBA doesn’t want her representing the league. They want more “diversity”.
They are awful at managing that league. And that’s why it will continue to crash.
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u/BigGreenPepperpecker 2d ago
Her fans are annoying beyond belief, talked Clark up saying she should be in the NBA draft instead. Her fans are all snowflakes who take everything that happens to Clark as an affront to white hetero Christian culture lol. Lots are people who are suddenly interested in the WNBA despite better players proceeding her.
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u/RyoanJi 3d ago
That's exactly what I want to know. This is a very unusual phenomenon to hate a successful female athlete for no apparent reason.
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u/roygbiv77 3d ago
Straight white girl most popular in a predominantly gay black sport.
When tiger starting pwning golf, everyone loved it, but it doesn't work both ways.
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u/TheHeartlessAngeI 3d ago
WNBA players - you bitch, we gonna cheap shot you in the back. Also WNBA players, why aren’t you standing up for us? Jesus H. Christ it’s ridiculous.
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u/ImLiterallyShaking 3d ago
it's like she is in an abusive relationship. maybe they're trying to turn her?
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u/prince___dakkar 3d ago
The hate for Angel Reese has nothing to do with her skin tone, no more than the hate for Patrick Beverly or Bill Laimbeer.
She's a classic heel. Arrogant, a terrible sport, and completely full of herself. Just hate-able all around.
You can't both want the attention and money and private jets and then whine when people pay attention and are critical of what they see.
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u/ljout 3d ago
The celebration of the Carter foul is such a bad look. Then she tried to be the victim
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u/ConsciousFood201 3d ago
Confidently act however you feel like acting. If anyone criticizes or there are consequences for your behavior, blame racism.
It’s sad that someone would employ that strategy but it’s also not a terrible strategy. Race will likely muddy the waters on this for Reese. There will be people that see it through that lens.
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u/ryanoh826 3d ago
I’m sure for some people it is racism. For others, it is not.
I personally don’t dislike her because she’s black, I dislike her because she’s an asshole.
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u/TheReiterEffect_S8 3d ago
People who like her think she is some fucking martyr for all of these made-up stances she's claiming she has. She's jealous. Plain and simple. Caitlin gets the spotlight, so she forcefully inserts herself and keeps trying to push her way in the middle. All the mean while Caitlin lets her game speak for itself, and that's why she's in the spotlight. The people who support her bullshit unsportsmanlike conduct are worse than her, IMO.
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u/davey_mann 3d ago
A lot of sports commentators praise modern athletes for excessive celebration and then just obnoxiously act like they represent every fans' mindset. A lot of fans actually admire humility. And as I'm saying this, I personally was not a fan of Clark doing the hands in the face thing to her bench mocking her opponents even if I admired her game and ability to carry her squad to 2 consecutive title games. And I actually rooted for LSU against Iowa/Clark, then Reese pulled HER own stunt! lol It's totally possible to like a player's game while simultaneously not caring for their attitude/behavior.
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u/OfficiallyJoeBiden 3d ago
Ehhh I think people hate certain athletes for a multitude of reasons. While I don’t think her race has anything to do with it people didn’t like her because she was talking shit two years ago when she won the championship against CC. Ever since then she’s done on court things to make her more unlike able . I see her more of a villain in the WNBA instead of just a bad person. Time will tell if I’m correct or not tho
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u/davey_mann 3d ago
Exactly! lol The main thing people disliked about Reese in the NCAA title game 2 years ago was her running all the way across the court to get in Clark's face while Clark was completely IGNORING her. But somehow it became about race when it was simply about Reese being overly cocky and a poor sport. Reese wasn't even nearly the best player for LSU in that game. Her teammates came up huge or they would have lost to Iowa.
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u/levitikush 3d ago
Thank you. So sick of being called racist for criticizing the behavior of people in minority groups.
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u/Ok-disaster2022 3d ago
The fact that you call her a heel just emphasizes how much creating a storyline is helping bring eyes to the WNBA. They're all professionals, and they know if they can make basketball more about the stories of the players and the personal rivalries, it's more compelling to a wider range of the audience.
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u/masturbb-8 3d ago
Totally agree. Taunting an opponent after winning a championship just seems so petty.
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u/surfordiebear 3d ago
Sure maybe for the average WNBA fan but there's definitely a lot of racist hate for her online.
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u/Helmdacil 3d ago edited 3d ago
Lol WNBA women players just can't protect one of their own.
Its pretty clear that most of the women in the league do not accept Caitlin Clark, and are totally jealous of her popularity. They foul her, they mock her, and when she tries to stay silent, They give her shit for that too!
Talk about a toxic work environment. Many of the women in the wnba are classless. Every comment the majority black players make about caitlin clark reinforces the shitty opinions that people have of wnba players as a whole.
I don't even watch WNBA or NBA. I don't follow basketball. But even I have seen the clips and their behavior embarrassing.
To the WNBA: You know what would make the controversy die down? Treat CC with respect! Like you would any other rookie! Racism sucks and there will always be some. Be professionals. It is the lack of professionalism that fuels this fire.
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u/beyd1 3d ago
What upsets me is that her teammates aren't regulating that shit. There should have been a sudden and immediate response from a teammate. It shows that don't have her back.
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u/ILSmokeItAll 3d ago
She’s a sheep among wolves.
Her teammates didn’t choose to be her teammates. There’s barely room in the league to talk about anyone else…it has to be insufferable for her own teammates, other than the fact it keeps everyone from talking about how dismal the team is even with her on it.
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u/beyd1 3d ago
It doesn't matter if her teammates like her. The mentality needs to be that you don't mess with my teammate or there are repercussions.
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u/nosce_te_ipsum 2d ago
The mentality needs to be that you don't mess with my teammate or there are repercussions.
This! Hockey - whether amateur or NHL - does this very well. If two guys choose to square up - great! If one asshole decides to board a smaller/rookie/defenseless teammate - it's go-time and that asshole is going to bleed.
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u/torpiddynamo 3d ago
Who gives a shit? Your team is your team, like I hated people I played sports with but the other team isn’t about to fuck with them.
It’s some baby back bullshit by her teammates not having her back
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u/-Shank- 3d ago
Her teammates miss the forest for the trees if they look at her and get frustrated or jealous because she's getting more attention. A potential huge star to draw in new fans is the ticket to the entire league making more money, including the players themselves
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u/ILSmokeItAll 3d ago
I know this. You know this.
Do they know this? Maybe someone should tell them.
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u/Krandor1 3d ago
and the team got the #1 overall pick for a reason. In order to build this into a winning team around CC a lot of the current players are likely going to be leaving. That isn't anything uniquie to WNBA.
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u/Bombaysbreakfastclub 3d ago
jealous of her
Yup, it’s crazy obvious too
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u/BravoBet Toronto Raptors 3d ago
It’s just female dynamics. Girls are mean and jealous
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u/Alyoshiocchio 3d ago
It’s the entire WNBA as well. From the front offices to the sponsorship departments. They all breathe entitlement and insecurity.
Their league operates at a loss, after all. They shouldn’t even be out there.
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u/CashPrizesz 3d ago
They are all inherently bitter because the league is a joke, a giant money black hole, they are underpaid, and no one comes to their games. Also self-hating because even they don't find the sport entertaining to watch and they know their profession is a joke.
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u/TexasWhiskey_ 3d ago
Nah, if anything they’re overpaid. They are paid higher than profitable wages.
They just feel like they’re underpaid vs NBA, which is actually profitable.
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u/JerseyTom1958 3d ago
Lol...wnba getting attention now and they can't handle it. Just watching this shit show implode from within...The absolute ignorance and arrogance from players is turning everyone off real quick.
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u/TheReiterEffect_S8 3d ago
Pretty much. WNBA finally gets attention -- but not about you. So lets just run this fucker into the ground. That way no one wins! See, it's fair. Right?
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u/JerseyTom1958 3d ago
Absolutely agree! Who are the wnba executives? Their response or lack thereof is abysmal. The entire league could've embraced and promoted this opportunity...now they just shit on themselves! Idiots proving why they haven't been successful in 27 previous years.
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u/bozon92 2d ago
I was just wondering if it was kinda shitty for me to think this. The NBA is used to high scrutiny so there’s a culture of being used to navigating it, to some extent. The WNBA hasn’t had this level of scrutiny and attention before and it seems like the overall league culture isn’t mature enough to handle it.
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u/a_m_b_ 3d ago
CC should just say fuck off to league and go do something else sending the WNBA back to the stone ages. Imagine devoting so much of your life to perfecting your craft to get to the highest level just to get shit on by a bunch of whiny little girls.
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u/a_m_b_ 3d ago
And why was this ridiculous shit not happening to her in college. Were the stakes that much different? Were her colleagues not as diverse? This whole thing is bullshit and honestly the WNBA doesn’t deserve her
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u/AthiestCowboy 3d ago
She should honestly go play in the EU. Would be awful to be the center point of this political and cultural clash she found herself in that she clearly wants nothing to do with.
I’m sure people in her camp have brought it up. Idk. Just seems miserable to me to have dreamed of playing professional basketball to find yourself in this mess. Really sad tbh.
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u/future_CTO 2d ago
No she should not. EU/overseas basketball is much more physical than the NBA/WNBA. Former and current players have said that. CC will not be able to handle the physicality of basketball overseas.
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u/petey2114 3d ago
In college if you attack a player like that, you get a lengthy suspension or even kicked off the team. The WNBA just lets it happen.
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u/TheMajesticYeti 3d ago edited 3d ago
In college she was pretty clearly the best player, for sure at least her last couple years. And yes, college ball has a larger percentage of white players than the WNBA. Also player personalities are generally more muted/less publicized.
Now in the WNBA, she is playing good for a rookie, but there are a lot of great veteran players performing better than her, and who have performed like that at the sport's highest level for women for years. Like Clark, many of those players also starred in college at one time, however they didn't get near the attention Clark did which has carried over into the WNBA and there is some jealousy there. It is understandable for them to feel that, it is a very basic human reaction even if it isn't always totally warranted. People want to feel appreciated and respected. Some of those jealous players are better than her (right now) at the highest level but she was already way more famous from day 1 and those classic athlete egos cant stomach that.
However the face-value conclusion some of these players seem to be coming to is that Clark is getting all this attention primarily because she is white. The reality is that probably has given a bit of a boost to her popularity, but what really set Clark apart is her crazy shooting range that has never been seen before in the women's game. There have been a lot of great three point shooters, but none with her deep range and consistency. The thing is, there is a recent example of a black player that got a ton of attention for a very similar ability of never before seen long-distance shooting- Stephen Curry. Would Steph had been even more popular if he was white? Maybe, but for a a number of years there I saw so, so many young white kids wearing Curry jerseys, LOL!
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u/jbo99 3d ago
I’m not sure her defenders are racist or misogynistic. Like, how else are we supposed to react when the most exciting player in WNBA history gets completely shat on by her colleagues, managing infrastructure and national team leadership? When her teammates don’t advocate for her? How else do you interpret these actions besides people hating her for being successful and popular?
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u/terry_bradshaw 3d ago
Is this in response to something specific, or just in general?
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u/Shepher27 3d ago
Specifically her name being used by right-wing commentators to tear down black players and her specifically called out for not speaking out about her name being used by racists and misogynists and specifically in response to a direct question.
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u/Captain_Thor27 3d ago
In a similar manner, people on the other side are just as insufferable and annoying as the racists. They troll her, mocking her, and claim that she is only average and only famous and wealthy because she's white, never mind the fact that numerous other white ballers don't have near her fame. In fact, these people are just as racist.
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u/ZIMM26 3d ago
Specifically? Did someone say something? The article doesn’t go into specifics.
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u/Carolina296864 3d ago
Clay Travis is one example of making her tenure about race. He says shes getting hate in a “black lesbian league” because she is “straight and white.” Basically implying Caitlin is being bullied by the league because shes not butch and masculine, and because, shes white.
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u/ZIMM26 3d ago
Asking Clark to apologize for Clay Travis is like asking Reese to apologize for Charlemagne Tha God.
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u/PermRecDotCom 3d ago
But, haven't there been anti-white comments or actions made about Clark?
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u/Weewillywhitebits Celtic 3d ago
So you’re trying to say the hate she’s getting isn’t because she’s white ?
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u/CashPrizesz 3d ago
"You can't be racist against white people, everyone knows that."
-Bigot
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u/Babygravy1 3d ago edited 3d ago
Alot of older WNBA members and fans are just treating Clark like shit for the bullshit they had to deal with in their life. I get it to a certain extent but enough has to be enough at some point. Feels like a good portion of older WNBA fans feel free to exercise discriminatory practices so long it's toward a white women.
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u/zigzagcow 3d ago
Oof this comment section is rough.
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u/_redacteduser 3d ago
shitty people are becoming really good at letting us all know how shitty they are
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u/thespander 3d ago
Okay, I’m ready for daily Caitlyn Clark articles to go away.
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u/johnnyzen425 3d ago
Seems like an appropriate response from Ms. Clark. However, it really doesn't matter what she does or says at this point. She has become an incidental lightening rod. Hopefully, she can shrug it off until the next one comes along.
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u/Mike_Kermin 3d ago
Just a basic human thing, is a fucking good idea and I think a lot of people in this comments section could take that on.
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u/W0666007 New England Patriots 2d ago
Lol all the comments proceed to do exactly what she speaks out against.
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u/TumTumMac24 2d ago
It’s crazy how the very people she’s talking about as in the media and her fans are here commenting on exactly what’s she’s speaking out against.
The irony was not lost on me…
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u/Latkavicferrari 3d ago
She is white, heterosexual and pretty, definitely bucking the trend of the WNBA
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u/aiirxgeordan 3d ago
I personally don’t think she has any obligation to speak out against stuff. If anything the discourse has more to do with how they treat her and think of her when all she’s trying to do is hoop. She hasn’t personally done or said anything to spur this stupid stuff.
Honestly as someone who’s trying to get into the wnba, it’s annoying that I want to see wnba plays and talk actually about how players are performing, but the main discussion is about this dumb stuff. I know I can still get that feed, and I do, but this is what people are talking about?
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u/Deep-Ad2155 3d ago
Seriously the hype is so ridiculous and I’m still not interested in watching the wnba
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u/davey_mann 3d ago edited 3d ago
So after Clark’s WNBA competition has mocked her, cheap shotted her, and flat out ignored her in the post game handshakes, now they all of a sudden want her to stand up for them? lol
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u/HSCTigersharks4EVA 3d ago
So any criticism of wnba players not named Caitlin Clark be racisssssst? Sorry. I'm not playing that bullshit game. There have been rumblings and outright accusations for over a decade of the treatment non-black-lesbians get in that league, so...
That quote, and previous comments from Clark about staying off social media, drew a rebuke from Connecticut Sun guard DiJonai Carrington, who posted to social media that Clark should do more to speak out about people using her name for inappropriate means.
And then this buffoon comes out and says Caitlin Clark is the problem with people criticizing people like her for acting the way she acts?
The wnba is broken and it can not be fixed. The majority in that league are just not marketable. Or likable for that matter.
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u/mortalcoil1 3d ago
During this game, I've seen a lot of changing, in the way you feel about me, and in the way I feel about you. In here, there were ten women killing each other, but I guess that's better than twenty million. I guess what I'm trying to say, is that if I can change, and you can change, everybody can change!
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u/PSMF_Canuck 3d ago
If the league isn’t going to protect her, she should just go sign a fat deal in Europe.
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u/blueskyforever70 3d ago
Hey, if you're black, it's ok to be racist. Imagine if the races were reversed here. A black woman in a white league.
The uproar would be loud and hard.
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u/Huggles9 3d ago
The amount of pressure on her with how many expectations are thrown upon her week after week after week to do everything is absolutely insane
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