Caitlin Clark vs Angel Reese - "Burning Heart" in the Desert (1 Viewer)

[Cowboysfan8]

The reason the the sport's growth is being restricted is that a particular subset of "fans" will only show up if a straight white player is the star

Bull ****

 

[Navin Johnson]

WNBA ladies caused quite the stir with the "Pay US What You Owe Us" shirts.

Reminder the WNBA is not profitable.

Lots of entities lose money early in their lifespan, including the NBA.

The NBA essentially owns the WNBA. They can play the players more - and my guess is they will soon.

They are in their 28th season. When does early lifespan end?

Caitlin Clark might be the saivor. Things improved financially once she entered the league. She has a clear case for not being paid what she's worth.

That was my point a few messages ago. She's clearly bringing eyeballs, fans, and popularity to the league that everyone can benefit from. And most of the players treat her like crap out of jealousy as if they want to continue making peanuts to play. It's so odd.

If she retired today, I'm not sure 200 people would watch their games the rest of the season.

I feel like this "most of the players treat her like crap" narrative is pure social media fantasy. She's surely the biggest current star in the sport. I watch almost no WNBA, but every time I see Caitlyn Clark she's walking a red carpet somewhere or is the new star in a national ad campaign. Who is treating her poorly? Please don't pretend that playing defense and hard fouling on the other team's star player is some form of mistreatment.

Clark has put up with a decent amount of BS from the league and league mates. She was left off the Olympic roster because the veterans said she "didn't deserve it".

There was also that one WNBA owner who took issue with Clark being named Time athlete of the year, saying the whole league deserved it more than elevating one person.

She was left off the olympic roster because she didn't attend the try out.

I think that's just their excuse. She was playing in the NCAA final four at the time and was eligable for the team.

She was arguably the most popular womens player in the world and Team USA kept her off the world stage. Clark on Team USA would have benefited the entire sport of women's basketball globally and they passed on it. Things like that might be why the sport can't take the next step.

I don't think you can argue that. Bueckers was still a more popular player internationally than CC. I remember asking my mens players if they saw her logo shots online and, without exception, they would say the only women's college basketball player they knew was Paige or that they didn't follow any women's college basketball. The reason the the sport's growth is being restricted is that a particular subset of "fans" will only show up if a straight white player is the star. The numbers that CC brings are great, but those fans won't stick around once the shine wears off.

Caitlin Clark has the #2 OVERALL selling jersey globally in 2024. She was an international star.

Clark is responsible for 26.5% of WNBA revenue because of how popular she is. Any entity passing on that is foolish.

I also think if you make the argument that the shine could wear off Clark and those fans don't stick around, that's bad news for the future of the WNBA. aka, pay us what you owe us makes sense if there is projected growth in the WNBA. If it's a flash in the pan, the league will continue to lose money.

3 investors/groups just paid $250M each to get a franchise license. Apparently there is some demand and projected growth.

The average franchise value in 2025 is $269M, a 180% increase over 2024.

As far as the pay us what you owe us campaign goes, NBAPA gets roughly 50% of BRI, while the WNBPA gets roughly 9%. The league is owned 42% by the NBA and 16% outside investors, both of which take their share of revenue off the top. If you increased the BRI to 50% the increase in pay would be, collectively, $75M or less than $6M per team, roughly 4% of the average franchise value increase this past year. The new franchise fees alone would cover payrolls for 10 years. That being said, ownership will never agree to a jump to 50% BRI, but the PA isn't agreeing to 25% either.

 

[Navin Johnson]

WNBA ladies caused quite the stir with the "Pay US What You Owe Us" shirts.

Reminder the WNBA is not profitable.

Lots of entities lose money early in their lifespan, including the NBA.

The NBA essentially owns the WNBA. They can play the players more - and my guess is they will soon.

They are in their 28th season. When does early lifespan end?

Caitlin Clark might be the saivor. Things improved financially once she entered the league. She has a clear case for not being paid what she's worth.

That was my point a few messages ago. She's clearly bringing eyeballs, fans, and popularity to the league that everyone can benefit from. And most of the players treat her like crap out of jealousy as if they want to continue making peanuts to play. It's so odd.

If she retired today, I'm not sure 200 people would watch their games the rest of the season.

I feel like this "most of the players treat her like crap" narrative is pure social media fantasy. She's surely the biggest current star in the sport. I watch almost no WNBA, but every time I see Caitlyn Clark she's walking a red carpet somewhere or is the new star in a national ad campaign. Who is treating her poorly? Please don't pretend that playing defense and hard fouling on the other team's star player is some form of mistreatment.

Watch the games. If you think she isn't targeted I don't know what else to say. It's mind-boggling she can be everyone's cash cow and so many of these players can't get out of their own way.

I watch multiple games a week. The targeted narrative is

Was she targeted last year?

A couple times? Sure. But she also gets calls upgraded due to her status and imbellishing.

 

[CletiusMaximus]

WNBA ladies caused quite the stir with the "Pay US What You Owe Us" shirts.

Reminder the WNBA is not profitable.

Lots of entities lose money early in their lifespan, including the NBA.

The NBA essentially owns the WNBA. They can play the players more - and my guess is they will soon.

They are in their 28th season. When does early lifespan end?

Caitlin Clark might be the saivor. Things improved financially once she entered the league. She has a clear case for not being paid what she's worth.

That was my point a few messages ago. She's clearly bringing eyeballs, fans, and popularity to the league that everyone can benefit from. And most of the players treat her like crap out of jealousy as if they want to continue making peanuts to play. It's so odd.

If she retired today, I'm not sure 200 people would watch their games the rest of the season.

I feel like this "most of the players treat her like crap" narrative is pure social media fantasy. She's surely the biggest current star in the sport. I watch almost no WNBA, but every time I see Caitlyn Clark she's walking a red carpet somewhere or is the new star in a national ad campaign. Who is treating her poorly? Please don't pretend that playing defense and hard fouling on the other team's star player is some form of mistreatment.

Clark has put up with a decent amount of BS from the league and league mates. She was left off the Olympic roster because the veterans said she "didn't deserve it".

There was also that one WNBA owner who took issue with Clark being named Time athlete of the year, saying the whole league deserved it more than elevating one person.

She was left off the olympic roster because she didn't attend the try out.

I think that's just their excuse. She was playing in the NCAA final four at the time and was eligable for the team.

She was arguably the most popular womens player in the world and Team USA kept her off the world stage. Clark on Team USA would have benefited the entire sport of women's basketball globally and they passed on it. Things like that might be why the sport can't take the next step.

I don't think you can argue that. Bueckers was still a more popular player internationally than CC. I remember asking my mens players if they saw her logo shots online and, without exception, they would say the only women's college basketball player they knew was Paige or that they didn't follow any women's college basketball. The reason the the sport's growth is being restricted is that a particular subset of "fans" will only show up if a straight white player is the star. The numbers that CC brings are great, but those fans won't stick around once the shine wears off.

Caitlin Clark has the #2 OVERALL selling jersey globally in 2024. She was an international star.

Clark is responsible for 26.5% of WNBA revenue because of how popular she is. Any entity passing on that is foolish.

I also think if you make the argument that the shine could wear off Clark and those fans don't stick around, that's bad news for the future of the WNBA. aka, pay us what you owe us makes sense if there is projected growth in the WNBA. If it's a flash in the pan, the league will continue to lose money.

The question for me is what role the WNBA has in Olympic roster decisions and whether the marketing side is important to the Women’s Olympic committee’s goal in team selection. If marketing and popularity is an important part of the goal for USA Basketball, they obviously dropped the ball by leaving her out and I would think the league didn’t appreciate that. But they’ve burned other bridges as well, for example by leaving Arike off in 2020 which alienated her at a time when she was one of the best players available. Otherwise, there were some basketball reasons to go with more experienced players. Clark was fresh off the NCAA tournament and needed a break, and hadn’t played much international basketball. There were extensive discussions here about it at the time.

 

[Max Power]

WNBA ladies caused quite the stir with the "Pay US What You Owe Us" shirts.

Reminder the WNBA is not profitable.

Lots of entities lose money early in their lifespan, including the NBA.

The NBA essentially owns the WNBA. They can play the players more - and my guess is they will soon.

They are in their 28th season. When does early lifespan end?

Caitlin Clark might be the saivor. Things improved financially once she entered the league. She has a clear case for not being paid what she's worth.

That was my point a few messages ago. She's clearly bringing eyeballs, fans, and popularity to the league that everyone can benefit from. And most of the players treat her like crap out of jealousy as if they want to continue making peanuts to play. It's so odd.

If she retired today, I'm not sure 200 people would watch their games the rest of the season.

I feel like this "most of the players treat her like crap" narrative is pure social media fantasy. She's surely the biggest current star in the sport. I watch almost no WNBA, but every time I see Caitlyn Clark she's walking a red carpet somewhere or is the new star in a national ad campaign. Who is treating her poorly? Please don't pretend that playing defense and hard fouling on the other team's star player is some form of mistreatment.

Clark has put up with a decent amount of BS from the league and league mates. She was left off the Olympic roster because the veterans said she "didn't deserve it".

There was also that one WNBA owner who took issue with Clark being named Time athlete of the year, saying the whole league deserved it more than elevating one person.

She was left off the olympic roster because she didn't attend the try out.

I think that's just their excuse. She was playing in the NCAA final four at the time and was eligable for the team.

She was arguably the most popular womens player in the world and Team USA kept her off the world stage. Clark on Team USA would have benefited the entire sport of women's basketball globally and they passed on it. Things like that might be why the sport can't take the next step.

I don't think you can argue that. Bueckers was still a more popular player internationally than CC. I remember asking my mens players if they saw her logo shots online and, without exception, they would say the only women's college basketball player they knew was Paige or that they didn't follow any women's college basketball. The reason the the sport's growth is being restricted is that a particular subset of "fans" will only show up if a straight white player is the star. The numbers that CC brings are great, but those fans won't stick around once the shine wears off.

Caitlin Clark has the #2 OVERALL selling jersey globally in 2024. She was an international star.

Clark is responsible for 26.5% of WNBA revenue because of how popular she is. Any entity passing on that is foolish.

I also think if you make the argument that the shine could wear off Clark and those fans don't stick around, that's bad news for the future of the WNBA. aka, pay us what you owe us makes sense if there is projected growth in the WNBA. If it's a flash in the pan, the league will continue to lose money.

3 investors/groups just paid $250M each to get a franchise license. Apparently there is some demand and projected growth.

There is growth, but it's 99% because of Clark. The Franchise license fee was $50M in 2023 before clark came on the scene. That $50M was a record at the time.

 

[SWC]

i dont think there were any valid basketball related reasons to leave clark or ogunbawale off of the team and such arguments are sort of after the fact rationalization lets not forget that the two big snubs cc and milwaukees own arike were supurb and beat the olympic squad where many analysts said that cc was the best player on the court and arike led all scorers i mean you can make arguments about this or that but the game on the court showed what was what in my opinion take that to the bank brohans

 

[Max Power]

WNBA ladies caused quite the stir with the "Pay US What You Owe Us" shirts.

Reminder the WNBA is not profitable.

Lots of entities lose money early in their lifespan, including the NBA.

The NBA essentially owns the WNBA. They can play the players more - and my guess is they will soon.

They are in their 28th season. When does early lifespan end?

Caitlin Clark might be the saivor. Things improved financially once she entered the league. She has a clear case for not being paid what she's worth.

That was my point a few messages ago. She's clearly bringing eyeballs, fans, and popularity to the league that everyone can benefit from. And most of the players treat her like crap out of jealousy as if they want to continue making peanuts to play. It's so odd.

If she retired today, I'm not sure 200 people would watch their games the rest of the season.

I feel like this "most of the players treat her like crap" narrative is pure social media fantasy. She's surely the biggest current star in the sport. I watch almost no WNBA, but every time I see Caitlyn Clark she's walking a red carpet somewhere or is the new star in a national ad campaign. Who is treating her poorly? Please don't pretend that playing defense and hard fouling on the other team's star player is some form of mistreatment.

Clark has put up with a decent amount of BS from the league and league mates. She was left off the Olympic roster because the veterans said she "didn't deserve it".

There was also that one WNBA owner who took issue with Clark being named Time athlete of the year, saying the whole league deserved it more than elevating one person.

She was left off the olympic roster because she didn't attend the try out.

I think that's just their excuse. She was playing in the NCAA final four at the time and was eligable for the team.

She was arguably the most popular womens player in the world and Team USA kept her off the world stage. Clark on Team USA would have benefited the entire sport of women's basketball globally and they passed on it. Things like that might be why the sport can't take the next step.

I don't think you can argue that. Bueckers was still a more popular player internationally than CC. I remember asking my mens players if they saw her logo shots online and, without exception, they would say the only women's college basketball player they knew was Paige or that they didn't follow any women's college basketball. The reason the the sport's growth is being restricted is that a particular subset of "fans" will only show up if a straight white player is the star. The numbers that CC brings are great, but those fans won't stick around once the shine wears off.

Caitlin Clark has the #2 OVERALL selling jersey globally in 2024. She was an international star.

Clark is responsible for 26.5% of WNBA revenue because of how popular she is. Any entity passing on that is foolish.

I also think if you make the argument that the shine could wear off Clark and those fans don't stick around, that's bad news for the future of the WNBA. aka, pay us what you owe us makes sense if there is projected growth in the WNBA. If it's a flash in the pan, the league will continue to lose money.

The question for me is what role the WNBA has in Olympic roster decisions and whether the marketing side is important to the Women’s Olympic committee’s goal in team selection. If marketing and popularity is an important part of the goal for USA Basketball, they obviously dropped the ball by leaving her out and I would think the league didn’t appreciate that. But they’ve burned other bridges as well, for example by leaving Arike off in 2020 which alienated her at a time when she was one of the best players available. Otherwise, there were some basketball reasons to go with more experienced players. Clark was fresh off the NCAA tournament and needed a break, and hadn’t played much international basketball. There were extensive discussions here about it at the time.

It sounds like the WNBA will pause it's season for the Olympic games, so they have to have some sort of agreement. Obviously the smart move is to capitalize on their stars and Caitiln was by far their biggest at that time. It's fine if they wanted to use the basketball reasoning, but from a business perspective it doesn't make sense to me.

 

[SWC]

also i think that clark versus reese is great for the league financially and it is the wnbas larry versus magic and just like that rivalry was in part driven by race so is this one but i worry that marketing forces being what they are and the state of politics is so awful that what should be more of a larry versus magic thing gets turned into a culture war every time it comes up which is totally unfortunte take that to the bank brohans

 

[Brunell4MVP]

The reason the the sport's growth is being restricted is that a particular subset of "fans" will only show up if a straight white player is the star

Bull ****

Yeah, really. Ionescu is as white and straight as it gets. And a great shooter. Nobody tuned in. They tune in because Clark has swag to go with the range. Though I think she's losing that swag. She seems beat down by the spotlight and physical play IMO.

 

[CletiusMaximus]

i dont think there were any valid basketball related reasons to leave clark or ogunbawale off of the team and such arguments are sort of after the fact rationalization lets not forget that the two big snubs cc and milwaukees own arike were supurb and beat the olympic squad where many analysts said that cc was the best player on the court and arike led all scorers i mean you can make arguments about this or that but the game on the court showed what was what in my opinion take that to the bank brohans

One thing I remember was the difficult timing of it all. She played in the NCAA Championship game in April and the WNBA season started about 6 weeks later. So she’s in the middle of a massive marketing firestorm and is just beginning her first pro season with a new team. Indiana started the season poorly and had a losing record when the Olympic basketball started in late July. I got the criticism at the time but also thought it might be good for her to stay with her team and get some time off rather than joining the national team in France at that time. To me it seemed like a lot to ask from a kid who’s never played Olympic basketball before. Also, although the 2024 final was a close game, the US has won every women’s basketball gold medal for 30 years so no real danger in giving Taurasi her swan song. Arike wasn’t an option for USA basketball in ‘24 because she withdrew herself from the player pool after her prior experience with that team.

 

[SWC]

i dont think there were any valid basketball related reasons to leave clark or ogunbawale off of the team and such arguments are sort of after the fact rationalization lets not forget that the two big snubs cc and milwaukees own arike were supurb and beat the olympic squad where many analysts said that cc was the best player on the court and arike led all scorers i mean you can make arguments about this or that but the game on the court showed what was what in my opinion take that to the bank brohans

One thing I remember was the difficult timing of it all. She played in the NCAA Championship game in April and the WNBA season started about 6 weeks later. So she’s in the middle of a massive marketing firestorm and is just beginning her first pro season with a new team. Indiana started the season poorly and had a losing record when the Olympic basketball started in late July. I got the criticism at the time but also thought it might be good for her to stay with her team and get some time off rather than joining the national team in France at that time. To me it seemed like a lot to ask from a kid who’s never played Olympic basketball before. Also, although the 2024 final was a close game, the US has won every women’s basketball gold medal for 30 years so no real danger in giving Taurasi her swan song. Arike wasn’t an option for USA basketball in ‘24 because she withdrew herself from the player pool after her prior experience with that team.

right but none of those are basketball reasons visavee cc or arike they are stupid political games being played by usa basketball so for arike the games they played before cost them and for clark lets not forget the coach at the time of us basketball reeve was badmouthing clark on social media as she was being denied a spot on the team it had very little to do with basketball take that to the bank bromigo

 

[CletiusMaximus]

i dont think there were any valid basketball related reasons to leave clark or ogunbawale off of the team and such arguments are sort of after the fact rationalization lets not forget that the two big snubs cc and milwaukees own arike were supurb and beat the olympic squad where many analysts said that cc was the best player on the court and arike led all scorers i mean you can make arguments about this or that but the game on the court showed what was what in my opinion take that to the bank brohans

One thing I remember was the difficult timing of it all. She played in the NCAA Championship game in April and the WNBA season started about 6 weeks later. So she’s in the middle of a massive marketing firestorm and is just beginning her first pro season with a new team. Indiana started the season poorly and had a losing record when the Olympic basketball started in late July. I got the criticism at the time but also thought it might be good for her to stay with her team and get some time off rather than joining the national team in France at that time. To me it seemed like a lot to ask from a kid who’s never played Olympic basketball before. Also, although the 2024 final was a close game, the US has won every women’s basketball gold medal for 30 years so no real danger in giving Taurasi her swan song. Arike wasn’t an option for USA basketball in ‘24 because she withdrew herself from the player pool after her prior experience with that team.

right but none of those are basketball reasons visavee cc or arike they are stupid political games being played by usa basketball so for arike the games they played before cost them and for clark lets not forget the coach at the time of us basketball reeve was badmouthing clark on social media as she was being denied a spot on the team it had very little to do with basketball take that to the bank bromigo

I don't remember the social media thing but obviously it sucks for the coach to get involved like that. I do think giving the player a rest and letting her integrate into her team is a basketball reason but that's just the speculation many were making at the time - I've never heard them explain the decision and am not about to defend USA Basketball in any event. Arike's situation is different. That was pure BS. I've been following her since her DSHA days, although not so much when she was at ND.

 

[pollardsvision]

WNBA ladies caused quite the stir with the "Pay US What You Owe Us" shirts.

Reminder the WNBA is not profitable.

Lots of entities lose money early in their lifespan, including the NBA.

The NBA essentially owns the WNBA. They can play the players more - and my guess is they will soon.

They are in their 28th season. When does early lifespan end?

Caitlin Clark might be the saivor. Things improved financially once she entered the league. She has a clear case for not being paid what she's worth.

That was my point a few messages ago. She's clearly bringing eyeballs, fans, and popularity to the league that everyone can benefit from. And most of the players treat her like crap out of jealousy as if they want to continue making peanuts to play. It's so odd.

If she retired today, I'm not sure 200 people would watch their games the rest of the season.

I feel like this "most of the players treat her like crap" narrative is pure social media fantasy. She's surely the biggest current star in the sport. I watch almost no WNBA, but every time I see Caitlyn Clark she's walking a red carpet somewhere or is the new star in a national ad campaign. Who is treating her poorly? Please don't pretend that playing defense and hard fouling on the other team's star player is some form of mistreatment.

What you are witnessing is classic media manipulation.

The "WNBA hates Caitlin" garbage draws eyeballs and listeners.

I try to avoid mainstream media in most forms (some Sunday mornings, I end up listening to it). Numerous Sundays, I've heard radio hosts posit the question......"why doesn't the WNBA embrace CC?" (or some form of that).

We've got a host asking the question, admitting they don't watch the W.
Then long list of callers "answering the question" admitting they don't watch the W either (but boy do they have an answer).

Think about how ridiculous that is, first of all. A bunch of people that don't watch a league waxing poetical about it.

People buy it. It's very easy to buy this garbage when you don't watch.

I'm not going to claim to know the opinions of 156 different WNBA players, but as someone that watches every game, and consumes a lot of media created by people that watch the league, the notion that the W, by and large, has some problem with Caitlin is ridiculous.

Just look at this past AS weekend. CC was having a ball. On the sidelines. On the Studbudz livestream. Heck, even CC's aunt was cutting loose (and certainly could have gotten herself some tail if she wanted it).

Mainstream media probably not going to report on Courtney shutting down a fan that was coming at Sophie Cunningham.

This is a tight-knit league that competes like hell on the court, but looks out for one another off the court. They are very tight-knit because they've had to be.

To anyone paying attention, CC is clearly a beloved part of the sisterhood overall.

Not that players can't have their own individual beefs.

I know Jacy Sheldon doesn't like CC. But that dates back to college.
Chennedy probably doesn't like CC. A lot of people spewing this crap probably don't even know that Chennedy has essentially been black-balled by the league. Playing in Mexico now, even though she's one of the 25 best scorers on the planet. She's got her own personal issues that are part of not being in the league. Somehow people still use the actions of a player not in the league as evidence of what others in the league think.

But the notion that CC isn't generally embraced is garbage spewed by people that don't pay attention to the league and are looking for a lazy way to get viewers, readers, and listeners.

The good news is that if the media blowhards are spewing stupid stuff about the league, maybe it's heading to big time after all.

 

[SWC]

i dont think there were any valid basketball related reasons to leave clark or ogunbawale off of the team and such arguments are sort of after the fact rationalization lets not forget that the two big snubs cc and milwaukees own arike were supurb and beat the olympic squad where many analysts said that cc was the best player on the court and arike led all scorers i mean you can make arguments about this or that but the game on the court showed what was what in my opinion take that to the bank brohans

One thing I remember was the difficult timing of it all. She played in the NCAA Championship game in April and the WNBA season started about 6 weeks later. So she’s in the middle of a massive marketing firestorm and is just beginning her first pro season with a new team. Indiana started the season poorly and had a losing record when the Olympic basketball started in late July. I got the criticism at the time but also thought it might be good for her to stay with her team and get some time off rather than joining the national team in France at that time. To me it seemed like a lot to ask from a kid who’s never played Olympic basketball before. Also, although the 2024 final was a close game, the US has won every women’s basketball gold medal for 30 years so no real danger in giving Taurasi her swan song. Arike wasn’t an option for USA basketball in ‘24 because she withdrew herself from the player pool after her prior experience with that team.

right but none of those are basketball reasons visavee cc or arike they are stupid political games being played by usa basketball so for arike the games they played before cost them and for clark lets not forget the coach at the time of us basketball reeve was badmouthing clark on social media as she was being denied a spot on the team it had very little to do with basketball take that to the bank bromigo

I don't remember the social media thing but obviously it sucks for the coach to get involved like that. I do think giving the player a rest and letting her integrate into her team is a basketball reason but that's just the speculation many were making at the time - I've never heard them explain the decision and am not about to defend USA Basketball in any event. Arike's situation is different. That was pure BS. I've been following her since her DSHA days, although not so much when she was at ND.

she was sooooo good at dsha it was unreal take that to the bank bromigo

 

[SWC]

WNBA ladies caused quite the stir with the "Pay US What You Owe Us" shirts.

Reminder the WNBA is not profitable.

Lots of entities lose money early in their lifespan, including the NBA.

The NBA essentially owns the WNBA. They can play the players more - and my guess is they will soon.

They are in their 28th season. When does early lifespan end?

Caitlin Clark might be the saivor. Things improved financially once she entered the league. She has a clear case for not being paid what she's worth.

That was my point a few messages ago. She's clearly bringing eyeballs, fans, and popularity to the league that everyone can benefit from. And most of the players treat her like crap out of jealousy as if they want to continue making peanuts to play. It's so odd.

If she retired today, I'm not sure 200 people would watch their games the rest of the season.

I feel like this "most of the players treat her like crap" narrative is pure social media fantasy. She's surely the biggest current star in the sport. I watch almost no WNBA, but every time I see Caitlyn Clark she's walking a red carpet somewhere or is the new star in a national ad campaign. Who is treating her poorly? Please don't pretend that playing defense and hard fouling on the other team's star player is some form of mistreatment.

What you are witnessing is classic media manipulation.

The "WNBA hates Caitlin" garbage draws eyeballs and listeners.

I try to avoid mainstream media in most forms (some Sunday mornings, I end up listening to it). Numerous Sundays, I've heard radio hosts posit the question......"why doesn't the WNBA embrace CC?" (or some form of that).

We've got a host asking the question, admitting they don't watch the W.
Then long list of callers "answering the question" admitting they don't watch the W either (but boy do they have an answer).

Think about how ridiculous that is, first of all. A bunch of people that don't watch a league waxing poetical about it.

People buy it. It's very easy to buy this garbage when you don't watch.

I'm not going to claim to know the opinions of 156 different WNBA players, but as someone that watches every game, and consumes a lot of media created by people that watch the league, the notion that the W, by and large, has some problem with Caitlin is ridiculous.

Just look at this past AS weekend. CC was having a ball. On the sidelines. On the Studbudz livestream. Heck, even CC's aunt was cutting loose (and certainly could have gotten herself some tail if she wanted it).

Mainstream media probably not going to report on Courtney shutting down a fan that was coming at Sophie Cunningham.

This is a tight-knit league that competes like hell on the court, but looks out for one another off the court. They are very tight-knit because they've had to be.

To anyone paying attention, CC is clearly a beloved part of the sisterhood overall.

Not that players can't have their own individual beefs.

I know Jacy Sheldon doesn't like CC. But that dates back to college.
Chennedy probably doesn't like CC. A lot of people spewing this crap probably don't even know that Chennedy has essentially been black-balled by the league. Playing in Mexico now, even though she's one of the 25 best scorers on the planet. She's got her own personal issues that are part of not being in the league. Somehow people still use the actions of a player not in the league as evidence of what others in the league think.

But the notion that CC isn't generally embraced is garbage spewed people that don't pay attention to the league and are looking for a lazy way to get viewers, readers, and listeners.

The good news is that if the media blowhards are spewing stupid stuff about the league, maybe it's heading to big time after all.

i dont know man there was definitely a healthy dose of hate that came her way in a manner that other rookies do not receive see also cheryl swoops who has badmouthed her continually taurasi and her different levels to this thing kelsey plum continually bashing her including just now for not being in the meeting about pay us what we are worth shirts breanna stewart has questioned clarks game and accolades angel reese has talked crap about her and was applauding her being fouled which is basically bush league aja wilson has said stuff about her i mean its more robust and prevelant than for any other player its more than just a media narrative take that to the bank brohan

 

[pollardsvision]

WNBA ladies caused quite the stir with the "Pay US What You Owe Us" shirts.

Reminder the WNBA is not profitable.

Lots of entities lose money early in their lifespan, including the NBA.

The NBA essentially owns the WNBA. They can play the players more - and my guess is they will soon.

They are in their 28th season. When does early lifespan end?

Caitlin Clark might be the saivor. Things improved financially once she entered the league. She has a clear case for not being paid what she's worth.

That was my point a few messages ago. She's clearly bringing eyeballs, fans, and popularity to the league that everyone can benefit from. And most of the players treat her like crap out of jealousy as if they want to continue making peanuts to play. It's so odd.

If she retired today, I'm not sure 200 people would watch their games the rest of the season.

I feel like this "most of the players treat her like crap" narrative is pure social media fantasy. She's surely the biggest current star in the sport. I watch almost no WNBA, but every time I see Caitlyn Clark she's walking a red carpet somewhere or is the new star in a national ad campaign. Who is treating her poorly? Please don't pretend that playing defense and hard fouling on the other team's star player is some form of mistreatment.

What you are witnessing is classic media manipulation.

The "WNBA hates Caitlin" garbage draws eyeballs and listeners.

I try to avoid mainstream media in most forms (some Sunday mornings, I end up listening to it). Numerous Sundays, I've heard radio hosts posit the question......"why doesn't the WNBA embrace CC?" (or some form of that).

We've got a host asking the question, admitting they don't watch the W.
Then long list of callers "answering the question" admitting they don't watch the W either (but boy do they have an answer).

Think about how ridiculous that is, first of all. A bunch of people that don't watch a league waxing poetical about it.

People buy it. It's very easy to buy this garbage when you don't watch.

I'm not going to claim to know the opinions of 156 different WNBA players, but as someone that watches every game, and consumes a lot of media created by people that watch the league, the notion that the W, by and large, has some problem with Caitlin is ridiculous.

Just look at this past AS weekend. CC was having a ball. On the sidelines. On the Studbudz livestream. Heck, even CC's aunt was cutting loose (and certainly could have gotten herself some tail if she wanted it).

Mainstream media probably not going to report on Courtney shutting down a fan that was coming at Sophie Cunningham.

This is a tight-knit league that competes like hell on the court, but looks out for one another off the court. They are very tight-knit because they've had to be.

To anyone paying attention, CC is clearly a beloved part of the sisterhood overall.

Not that players can't have their own individual beefs.

I know Jacy Sheldon doesn't like CC. But that dates back to college.
Chennedy probably doesn't like CC. A lot of people spewing this crap probably don't even know that Chennedy has essentially been black-balled by the league. Playing in Mexico now, even though she's one of the 25 best scorers on the planet. She's got her own personal issues that are part of not being in the league. Somehow people still use the actions of a player not in the league as evidence of what others in the league think.

But the notion that CC isn't generally embraced is garbage spewed people that don't pay attention to the league and are looking for a lazy way to get viewers, readers, and listeners.

The good news is that if the media blowhards are spewing stupid stuff about the league, maybe it's heading to big time after all.

i dont know man there was definitely a healthy dose of hate that came her way in a manner that other rookies do not receive see also cheryl swoops who has badmouthed her continually taurasi and her different levels to this thing kelsey plum continually bashing her including just now for not being in the meeting about pay us what we are worth shirts breanna stewart has questioned clarks game and accolades angel reese has talked crap about her and was applauding her being fouled which is basically bush league aja wilson has said stuff about her i mean its more robust and prevelant than for any other player its more than just a media narrative take that to the bank brohan

This is some more high level analysis from someone who openly doesn't watch the league.

By the way Emma Messeman just signed with the Liberty. That's not too different than Kevin Durant signing with the Warriors. I know we won't be getting into any of that here.

There are nuanced conversations to be had about all of your points. Something tells me you're not interested in that. But I'll try.

- Swoopes seems to have a beef. Unfortunate because I do like Swoopes. She was wrong about Caitlin on a lot of things. I think she was misinterpreted on some things but definitely I agree she probably has a beef. And back to the topic about the WNBA having a problem with Caitlin, Swoopes was removed as a commentator for the Wings and taking off the podcast (though she does still make guest appearances). The WNBA has distanced themselves from Swoopes a bit over this. Again, not good evidence that "the WNBA" has a problem with Caitlin.

-Taurasi said there are levels to this thing and it would be a tough transition. She was wrong and Caitlin transitioned brilliantly immediately. Not an outlandish statement and I don't see how there's hate there unless that's just what you're looking for. If someone wants to interpret that as 156 other players not liking her then I can't help you.

-unfamiliar with the Plum comments

-also unfamiliar with the Stewie comments. I just remember a couple weeks ago Stewie and Caitlin laughing with each other running down the court after Caitlin dropped a 33 ft bomb in her face.

-the Angel thing. I don't know if Angel likes her or not. Yeah celebrating the Chennedy hip check was not a good look.

Again unlike many of you in here and all the mainstream media people that don't watch the WNBA, I do not pretend to know the opinion of 156 different players.

You reached really deep for 3 players, and and someone that retired 15 years ago.

Maybe you're right. If so, would you be outraged if you learned that 4 people didn't like Michael Jordan?

 

[pollardsvision]

The other night when Caitlin was drunk having a great time on the Studbudz live stream, Aaliyah reached in and grabbed her beer for her. I'm not totally sure if she was trying to keep her from spilling it or just getting it off the camera so that the many kids that are her fans didn't see. But either way it was clear she was looking out for her.

Or her on the sidelines yucking it up with all players during the All-Star Game.

There's a beautiful thing going on here. If people don't want to see it, so be it.

 

[SWC]

WNBA ladies caused quite the stir with the "Pay US What You Owe Us" shirts.

Reminder the WNBA is not profitable.

Lots of entities lose money early in their lifespan, including the NBA.

The NBA essentially owns the WNBA. They can play the players more - and my guess is they will soon.

They are in their 28th season. When does early lifespan end?

Caitlin Clark might be the saivor. Things improved financially once she entered the league. She has a clear case for not being paid what she's worth.

That was my point a few messages ago. She's clearly bringing eyeballs, fans, and popularity to the league that everyone can benefit from. And most of the players treat her like crap out of jealousy as if they want to continue making peanuts to play. It's so odd.

If she retired today, I'm not sure 200 people would watch their games the rest of the season.

I feel like this "most of the players treat her like crap" narrative is pure social media fantasy. She's surely the biggest current star in the sport. I watch almost no WNBA, but every time I see Caitlyn Clark she's walking a red carpet somewhere or is the new star in a national ad campaign. Who is treating her poorly? Please don't pretend that playing defense and hard fouling on the other team's star player is some form of mistreatment.

What you are witnessing is classic media manipulation.

The "WNBA hates Caitlin" garbage draws eyeballs and listeners.

I try to avoid mainstream media in most forms (some Sunday mornings, I end up listening to it). Numerous Sundays, I've heard radio hosts posit the question......"why doesn't the WNBA embrace CC?" (or some form of that).

We've got a host asking the question, admitting they don't watch the W.
Then long list of callers "answering the question" admitting they don't watch the W either (but boy do they have an answer).

Think about how ridiculous that is, first of all. A bunch of people that don't watch a league waxing poetical about it.

People buy it. It's very easy to buy this garbage when you don't watch.

I'm not going to claim to know the opinions of 156 different WNBA players, but as someone that watches every game, and consumes a lot of media created by people that watch the league, the notion that the W, by and large, has some problem with Caitlin is ridiculous.

Just look at this past AS weekend. CC was having a ball. On the sidelines. On the Studbudz livestream. Heck, even CC's aunt was cutting loose (and certainly could have gotten herself some tail if she wanted it).

Mainstream media probably not going to report on Courtney shutting down a fan that was coming at Sophie Cunningham.

This is a tight-knit league that competes like hell on the court, but looks out for one another off the court. They are very tight-knit because they've had to be.

To anyone paying attention, CC is clearly a beloved part of the sisterhood overall.

Not that players can't have their own individual beefs.

I know Jacy Sheldon doesn't like CC. But that dates back to college.
Chennedy probably doesn't like CC. A lot of people spewing this crap probably don't even know that Chennedy has essentially been black-balled by the league. Playing in Mexico now, even though she's one of the 25 best scorers on the planet. She's got her own personal issues that are part of not being in the league. Somehow people still use the actions of a player not in the league as evidence of what others in the league think.

But the notion that CC isn't generally embraced is garbage spewed people that don't pay attention to the league and are looking for a lazy way to get viewers, readers, and listeners.

The good news is that if the media blowhards are spewing stupid stuff about the league, maybe it's heading to big time after all.

i dont know man there was definitely a healthy dose of hate that came her way in a manner that other rookies do not receive see also cheryl swoops who has badmouthed her continually taurasi and her different levels to this thing kelsey plum continually bashing her including just now for not being in the meeting about pay us what we are worth shirts breanna stewart has questioned clarks game and accolades angel reese has talked crap about her and was applauding her being fouled which is basically bush league aja wilson has said stuff about her i mean its more robust and prevelant than for any other player its more than just a media narrative take that to the bank brohan

This is some more high level analysis from someone who openly doesn't watch the league.

By the way Emma Messeman just signed with the Liberty. That's not too different than Kevin Durant signing with the Warriors. I know we won't be getting into any of that here.

There are nuanced conversations to be had about all of your points. Something tells me you're not interested in that. But I'll try.

- Swoopes seems to have a beef. Unfortunate because I do like Swoopes. She was wrong about Caitlin on a lot of things. I think she was misinterpreted on some things but definitely I agree she probably has a beef. And back to the topic about the WNBA having a problem with Caitlin, Swoopes was removed as a commentator for the Wings and taking off the podcast (though she does still make guest appearances). The WNBA has distanced themselves from Swoopes a bit over this. Again, not good evidence that "the WNBA" has a problem with Caitlin.

-Taurasi said there are levels to this thing and it would be a tough transition. She was wrong and Caitlin transitioned brilliantly immediately. Not an outlandish statement and I don't see how there's hate there unless that's just what you're looking for. If someone wants to interpret that as 156 other players not liking her then I can't help you.

-unfamiliar with the Plum comments

-also unfamiliar with the Stewie comments. I just remember a couple weeks ago Stewie and Caitlin laughing with each other running down the court after Caitlin dropped a 33 ft bomb in her face.

-the Angel thing. I don't know if Angel likes her or not. Yeah celebrating the Chennedy hip check was not a good look.

Again unlike many of you in here and all the mainstream media people that don't watch the WNBA, I do not pretend to know the opinion of 156 different players.

You reached really deep for 3 players, and and someone that retired 15 years ago.

Maybe you're right. If so, would you be outraged if you learned that 4 people didn't like Michael Jordan?

i respect your opinions a lot but i didnt reach deep for those they were all well known and i do watch the league and read about it so maybe that is the difference between us on that i think it is undeniable however that clark got hate in a way that no other rookie coming in ever has and that extended beyond the wnba to the olympic team including its coach openly negatively commenting on her on social media while she was being denied a spot on the team which again she subsequently beat along with arike while most commentators agreed that clark was the best player on the court that game between both teams so hey it is what it is and i am sure there are some players who love her some who hate her and most who just dont care but i cant think of another rookie who got the type of hate she has take that to the bank brohan but also good talking to you be well man

 

[Dinsy Ejotuz]

I don't know if Angel likes her or not.

You undermine your credibility a lot with this one.

Maybe those women are eye poking and bum rushing each other every night and we don't see the highlight because it's not Clark that's being knocked to the ground and then T'd up for the crime of getting trucked. Fine, I wouldn't know.

But Reese? It's been obvious for two years she HATES Clark.

 

[pollardsvision]

WNBA ladies caused quite the stir with the "Pay US What You Owe Us" shirts.

Reminder the WNBA is not profitable.

Lots of entities lose money early in their lifespan, including the NBA.

The NBA essentially owns the WNBA. They can play the players more - and my guess is they will soon.

They are in their 28th season. When does early lifespan end?

Caitlin Clark might be the saivor. Things improved financially once she entered the league. She has a clear case for not being paid what she's worth.

That was my point a few messages ago. She's clearly bringing eyeballs, fans, and popularity to the league that everyone can benefit from. And most of the players treat her like crap out of jealousy as if they want to continue making peanuts to play. It's so odd.

If she retired today, I'm not sure 200 people would watch their games the rest of the season.

I feel like this "most of the players treat her like crap" narrative is pure social media fantasy. She's surely the biggest current star in the sport. I watch almost no WNBA, but every time I see Caitlyn Clark she's walking a red carpet somewhere or is the new star in a national ad campaign. Who is treating her poorly? Please don't pretend that playing defense and hard fouling on the other team's star player is some form of mistreatment.

What you are witnessing is classic media manipulation.

The "WNBA hates Caitlin" garbage draws eyeballs and listeners.

I try to avoid mainstream media in most forms (some Sunday mornings, I end up listening to it). Numerous Sundays, I've heard radio hosts posit the question......"why doesn't the WNBA embrace CC?" (or some form of that).

We've got a host asking the question, admitting they don't watch the W.
Then long list of callers "answering the question" admitting they don't watch the W either (but boy do they have an answer).

Think about how ridiculous that is, first of all. A bunch of people that don't watch a league waxing poetical about it.

People buy it. It's very easy to buy this garbage when you don't watch.

I'm not going to claim to know the opinions of 156 different WNBA players, but as someone that watches every game, and consumes a lot of media created by people that watch the league, the notion that the W, by and large, has some problem with Caitlin is ridiculous.

Just look at this past AS weekend. CC was having a ball. On the sidelines. On the Studbudz livestream. Heck, even CC's aunt was cutting loose (and certainly could have gotten herself some tail if she wanted it).

Mainstream media probably not going to report on Courtney shutting down a fan that was coming at Sophie Cunningham.

This is a tight-knit league that competes like hell on the court, but looks out for one another off the court. They are very tight-knit because they've had to be.

To anyone paying attention, CC is clearly a beloved part of the sisterhood overall.

Not that players can't have their own individual beefs.

I know Jacy Sheldon doesn't like CC. But that dates back to college.
Chennedy probably doesn't like CC. A lot of people spewing this crap probably don't even know that Chennedy has essentially been black-balled by the league. Playing in Mexico now, even though she's one of the 25 best scorers on the planet. She's got her own personal issues that are part of not being in the league. Somehow people still use the actions of a player not in the league as evidence of what others in the league think.

But the notion that CC isn't generally embraced is garbage spewed people that don't pay attention to the league and are looking for a lazy way to get viewers, readers, and listeners.

The good news is that if the media blowhards are spewing stupid stuff about the league, maybe it's heading to big time after all.

i dont know man there was definitely a healthy dose of hate that came her way in a manner that other rookies do not receive see also cheryl swoops who has badmouthed her continually taurasi and her different levels to this thing kelsey plum continually bashing her including just now for not being in the meeting about pay us what we are worth shirts breanna stewart has questioned clarks game and accolades angel reese has talked crap about her and was applauding her being fouled which is basically bush league aja wilson has said stuff about her i mean its more robust and prevelant than for any other player its more than just a media narrative take that to the bank brohan

This is some more high level analysis from someone who openly doesn't watch the league.

By the way Emma Messeman just signed with the Liberty. That's not too different than Kevin Durant signing with the Warriors. I know we won't be getting into any of that here.

There are nuanced conversations to be had about all of your points. Something tells me you're not interested in that. But I'll try.

- Swoopes seems to have a beef. Unfortunate because I do like Swoopes. She was wrong about Caitlin on a lot of things. I think she was misinterpreted on some things but definitely I agree she probably has a beef. And back to the topic about the WNBA having a problem with Caitlin, Swoopes was removed as a commentator for the Wings and taking off the podcast (though she does still make guest appearances). The WNBA has distanced themselves from Swoopes a bit over this. Again, not good evidence that "the WNBA" has a problem with Caitlin.

-Taurasi said there are levels to this thing and it would be a tough transition. She was wrong and Caitlin transitioned brilliantly immediately. Not an outlandish statement and I don't see how there's hate there unless that's just what you're looking for. If someone wants to interpret that as 156 other players not liking her then I can't help you.

-unfamiliar with the Plum comments

-also unfamiliar with the Stewie comments. I just remember a couple weeks ago Stewie and Caitlin laughing with each other running down the court after Caitlin dropped a 33 ft bomb in her face.

-the Angel thing. I don't know if Angel likes her or not. Yeah celebrating the Chennedy hip check was not a good look.

Again unlike many of you in here and all the mainstream media people that don't watch the WNBA, I do not pretend to know the opinion of 156 different players.

You reached really deep for 3 players, and and someone that retired 15 years ago.

Maybe you're right. If so, would you be outraged if you learned that 4 people didn't like Michael Jordan?

i respect your opinions a lot but i didnt reach deep for those they were all well known and i do watch the league and read about it so maybe that is the difference between us on that i think it is undeniable however that clark got hate in a way that no other rookie coming in ever has and that extended beyond the wnba to the olympic team including its coach openly negatively commenting on her on social media while she was being denied a spot on the team which again she subsequently beat along with arike while most commentators agreed that clark was the best player on the court that game between both teams so hey it is what it is and i am sure there are some players who love her some who hate her and most who just dont care but i cant think of another rookie who got the type of hate she has take that to the bank brohan but also good talking to you be well man

I will agree that Clark got played more tightly, probably more physically, than probably any rookie ever (though I'm still fairly new and didn't see them all).

But Clark changes the geometry of the court in a way that no other player has. You've got a player that can launch it from 40 ft and also has the strength make longer passes than anybody else ever has.

Playing her really physical for 94 ft is about the only prayer a team has against her.

Maybe we'll just have to disagree about the difference between hate and physical play.

Sorry I know I get a bit snarky about all this.

 

[CletiusMaximus]

Hate is a strange term to use I think. I watched Clark a lot at Iowa and her play style earns her a good amount of the stick she gets. It’s part of what I like and admire about her. She is extremely aggressive, drives hard, does not shy away from contact and talks #### constantly. There was not a single gym in the Big Ten that welcomed her. I don’t understand why people think opposing players should just roll out the red carpet for her to drive the lane unmolested. Of course she’s going to be battered by opponents. These women are extremely competitive. That’s not hate, it’s completely normal and expected sportsmanship.

 

[pollardsvision]

I don't know if Angel likes her or not.

You undermine your credibility a lot with this one.

Maybe those women are eye poking and bum rushing each other every night and we don't see the highlight because it's not Clark that's being knocked to the ground and then T'd up for the crime of getting trucked. Fine, I wouldn't know.

But Reese? It's been obvious for two years she HATES Clark.

The eye poke was from Jacy Sheldon. Jacy and CC have hated each other for a long time. If we're going to cast broad nets, let's throw it on women's college basketball.

I said I don't know what Angel thinks of her. It's likely Angel doesn't like her. Ok. Again that goes back to a college beef.

I'm talking about the narrative that the WNBA doesn't like/accept Caitlin.

If we put Angel in there, that's 3 players. 2 started in college, the other (Chennedy) has been blackballed from the league (and Jacy may not make it much longer).

Forgot about the Marina Part. It's possible Marina don't like her. But Marina's a hot head and she's always willing to mix it up with anybody.

 

[tommyGunZ]

Hate is a strange term to use I think. I watched Clark a lot at Iowa and her play style earns her a good amount of the stick she gets. It’s part of what I like and admire about her. She is extremely aggressive, drives hard, does not shy away from contact and talks #### constantly. There was not a single gym in the Big Ten that welcomed her. I don’t understand why people think opposing players should just roll out the red carpet for her to drive the lane unmolested. Of course she’s going to be battered by opponents. These women are extremely competitive. That’s not hate, it’s completely normal and expected sportsmanship.

This.

It's also not surprising that WNBA veterans weren't clamoring for CC to be on the Olympic team when she was brand new to the league. If you've ever played sports on a competitive level you know that whenever the new young stud moves up a league, the players in that league want that player to earn it. I got the impression that CC was respected from day 1, and part of that respect was the intensity level that she was defended.

 

[Cowboysfan8]

and part of that respect was the intensity level that she was defended.

lol

 

[pollardsvision]

This really is wild.

What league do you guys really respect where they took it easy on the hot shot rookie so that it would be good for their pocketbooks?

That's a trick question because that league has never existed.

And if you did find out about a league that went easy on a new player because it was good for marketability, you would trash that league (and rightfully so).

This is sports. We expect people to compete.

Except for this one. I've given up trying to understand why.

 

[pollardsvision]

and part of that respect was the intensity level that she was defended.

lol

It's always baffled me how this issue has made grown gen Xers get so soft.

Great player comes into the league. You play them tough.

Tell me another time you've had a problem with that.

 

[tommyGunZ]

This really is wild.

What league do you guys really respect where they took it easy on the hot shot rookie so that it would be good for their pocketbooks?

That's a trick question because that league has never existed.

And if you did find out about a league that went easy on a new player because it was good for marketability, you would trash that league (and rightfully so).

This is sports. We expect people to compete.

Except for this one. I've given up trying to understand why

Victimhood is all the rage these days with about 1/2 our society.

 

[pollardsvision]

Hey guys I hate to break it to you.

Do you know the best way to slow down Patrick Mahomes or Tom Brady?

I don't want to alarm you, but it involves physicality.

 

[Cowboysfan8]

You play them tough

Ok

 

[Cowboysfan8]

Hey guys I hate to break it to you.

Do you know the best way to slow down Patrick Mahomes or Tom Brady?

I don't want to alarm you, but it involves physicality.

Lmao guys get penalized for looking at these guys the wrong way

 

[tommyGunZ]

You play them tough

Ok

Surprised CC survived that one. Was she hospitalized for weeks?

 

[Ramblin Wreck]

This really is wild.

What league do you guys really respect where they took it easy on the hot shot rookie so that it would be good for their pocketbooks?

That's a trick question because that league has never existed.

And if you did find out about a league that went easy on a new player because it was good for marketability, you would trash that league (and rightfully so).

This is sports. We expect people to compete.

Except for this one. I've given up trying to understand why

Victimhood is all the rage these days with about 1/2 our society.

I'm guessing you've watched 12 seconds of WNBA in the last two years.

 

[pollardsvision]

This really is wild.

What league do you guys really respect where they took it easy on the hot shot rookie so that it would be good for their pocketbooks?

That's a trick question because that league has never existed.

And if you did find out about a league that went easy on a new player because it was good for marketability, you would trash that league (and rightfully so).

This is sports. We expect people to compete.

Except for this one. I've given up trying to understand why

Victimhood is all the rage these days with about 1/2 our society.

I'm guessing you've watched 12 seconds of WNBA in the last two years.

That 12 seconds is more than what most people in here have watched.

Most everybody in here is watching what the algorithms that tell them to to get pissed off.

She's had a couple dirty plays on her. The Jacy eye polk, and the Chennedy hip check from 16 months ago. Might be missing a couple so let's call it 4 plays.

Everything else has been really hard physical defensive play.

To Tommy's point that's how you show respect in most leagues.

 

[pollardsvision]

I could be wrong on the number of people here actually watching these games.

There is an actual thread here for people that watch the sport.

It's crickets.

 

[Ramblin Wreck]

This really is wild.

What league do you guys really respect where they took it easy on the hot shot rookie so that it would be good for their pocketbooks?

That's a trick question because that league has never existed.

And if you did find out about a league that went easy on a new player because it was good for marketability, you would trash that league (and rightfully so).

This is sports. We expect people to compete.

Except for this one. I've given up trying to understand why

Victimhood is all the rage these days with about 1/2 our society.

I'm guessing you've watched 12 seconds of WNBA in the last two years.

That 12 seconds is more than what most people in here have watched.

Most everybody in here is watching what the algorithms that tell them to to get pissed off.

She's had a couple dirty plays on her. The Jacy eye polk, and the Chennedy hip check from 16 months ago. Might be missing a couple so let's call it 4 plays.

Everything else has been really hard physical defensive play.

To Tommy's point that's how you show respect in most leagues.

I'm talking about all the dirty cheap shots plus the snide comments about and the Olympic snub and similar. You and Tommy go through the mental gymnastics about the Olympics if you want but she should have been on the team and the only reason she wasn't was the old vets whining about her and doing the mean girls thing. Then you have clowns like Kelsey Plum doing her thing this weekend. It's all weird. None of them can bring big money to the league. Clark can and has. Why would you crap on your money maker? That's the point that started all of this talk.

 

[Max Power]

This really is wild.

What league do you guys really respect where they took it easy on the hot shot rookie so that it would be good for their pocketbooks?

That's a trick question because that league has never existed.

And if you did find out about a league that went easy on a new player because it was good for marketability, you would trash that league (and rightfully so).

This is sports. We expect people to compete.

Except for this one. I've given up trying to understand why.

Its because she's directly responsible for the popularity of the league. She's their cash cow and the fact that the league isn't doing more to protect her is wild stuff.

 

[bigbottom]

Hate is a strange term to use I think. I watched Clark a lot at Iowa and her play style earns her a good amount of the stick she gets. It’s part of what I like and admire about her. She is extremely aggressive, drives hard, does not shy away from contact and talks #### constantly. There was not a single gym in the Big Ten that welcomed her. I don’t understand why people think opposing players should just roll out the red carpet for her to drive the lane unmolested. Of course she’s going to be battered by opponents. These women are extremely competitive. That’s not hate, it’s completely normal and expected sportsmanship.

This.

It's also not surprising that WNBA veterans weren't clamoring for CC to be on the Olympic team when she was brand new to the league. If you've ever played sports on a competitive level you know that whenever the new young stud moves up a league, the players in that league want that player to earn it. I got the impression that CC was respected from day 1, and part of that respect was the intensity level that she was defended.

Taurasi was conceivably one of those vets. She got to set the record for most consecutive Olympics even though she was pretty much a bench warmer for much of these last games. And how was she able to set that record? Interestingly it was because she was on the Olympic team as a rookie.

 

[Alex P Keaton]

Hate is a strange term to use I think. I watched Clark a lot at Iowa and her play style earns her a good amount of the stick she gets. It’s part of what I like and admire about her. She is extremely aggressive, drives hard, does not shy away from contact and talks #### constantly. There was not a single gym in the Big Ten that welcomed her. I don’t understand why people think opposing players should just roll out the red carpet for her to drive the lane unmolested. Of course she’s going to be battered by opponents. These women are extremely competitive. That’s not hate, it’s completely normal and expected sportsmanship.

This.

It's also not surprising that WNBA veterans weren't clamoring for CC to be on the Olympic team when she was brand new to the league. If you've ever played sports on a competitive level you know that whenever the new young stud moves up a league, the players in that league want that player to earn it. I got the impression that CC was respected from day 1, and part of that respect was the intensity level that she was defended.

Taurasi was conceivably one of those vets. She got to set the record for most consecutive Olympics even though she was pretty much a bench warmer for much of these last games. And how was she able to set that record? Interestingly it was because she was on the Olympic team as a rookie.

Exactly

 

[Navin Johnson]

This really is wild.

What league do you guys really respect where they took it easy on the hot shot rookie so that it would be good for their pocketbooks?

That's a trick question because that league has never existed.

And if you did find out about a league that went easy on a new player because it was good for marketability, you would trash that league (and rightfully so).

This is sports. We expect people to compete.

Except for this one. I've given up trying to understand why

Victimhood is all the rage these days with about 1/2 our society.

I'm guessing you've watched 12 seconds of WNBA in the last two years.

I'm guessing that would be 12 seconds more than you

 

[Navin Johnson]

You play them tough

Ok

No embellishment there.

 

[Navin Johnson]

Hate is a strange term to use I think. I watched Clark a lot at Iowa and her play style earns her a good amount of the stick she gets. It’s part of what I like and admire about her. She is extremely aggressive, drives hard, does not shy away from contact and talks #### constantly. There was not a single gym in the Big Ten that welcomed her. I don’t understand why people think opposing players should just roll out the red carpet for her to drive the lane unmolested. Of course she’s going to be battered by opponents. These women are extremely competitive. That’s not hate, it’s completely normal and expected sportsmanship.

This.

It's also not surprising that WNBA veterans weren't clamoring for CC to be on the Olympic team when she was brand new to the league. If you've ever played sports on a competitive level you know that whenever the new young stud moves up a league, the players in that league want that player to earn it. I got the impression that CC was respected from day 1, and part of that respect was the intensity level that she was defended.

Taurasi was conceivably one of those vets. She got to set the record for most consecutive Olympics even though she was pretty much a bench warmer for much of these last games. And how was she able to set that record? Interestingly it was because she was on the Olympic team as a rookie.

She also attended the try out in 2004

 

[FarFromHome]

Just saw Kelsey Plum's interview comments about the decision to wear those shirts before all Star game. What a weird thing to say and a weird time to make that comment about Clark. She is supposed to be the veteran spokesman. Unless it's an inside joke between her and Clark that just felt very disrespectful and mean girl like. Imo

 

[Ramblin Wreck]

This really is wild.

What league do you guys really respect where they took it easy on the hot shot rookie so that it would be good for their pocketbooks?

That's a trick question because that league has never existed.

And if you did find out about a league that went easy on a new player because it was good for marketability, you would trash that league (and rightfully so).

This is sports. We expect people to compete.

Except for this one. I've given up trying to understand why

Victimhood is all the rage these days with about 1/2 our society.

I'm guessing you've watched 12 seconds of WNBA in the last two years.

I'm guessing that would be 12 seconds more than you

Nailed it. Way to stay on top of things.

 

[Max Power]

I didn't know the WNBA players are threatening a work stoppage for next season if they don't get what they want in the CBA.

 

[Alex P Keaton]

This really is wild.

What league do you guys really respect where they took it easy on the hot shot rookie so that it would be good for their pocketbooks?

That's a trick question because that league has never existed.

And if you did find out about a league that went easy on a new player because it was good for marketability, you would trash that league (and rightfully so).

This is sports. We expect people to compete.

Except for this one. I've given up trying to understand why

Victimhood is all the rage these days with about 1/2 our society.

I'm guessing you've watched 12 seconds of WNBA in the last two years.

I'm guessing that would be 12 seconds more than you

Nailed it. Way to stay on top of things.

Hey, he’s just being an objective observer

 

[TLEF316]

Just saw Kelsey Plum's interview comments about the decision to wear those shirts before all Star game. What a weird thing to say and a weird time to make that comment about Clark. She is supposed to be the veteran spokesman. Unless it's an inside joke between her and Clark that just felt very disrespectful and mean girl like. Imo

I was listening some guy on Sirius yesterday and he's claiming that whole comment was a joke. I guess "Team Clark" (the all-star team, not Clark personally or "her people") were all over social media the night before partying their asses off at the club. So the joke was that they were too hung over to make the early morning meeting about the shirts. (not that they were excluded)

That being said, I have very little doubt that the "media narrative" about the vet players not liking and being jealous of CC is true. You can just tell from their behavior on and off the court. Stars are gonna be subject to additional defensive attention and physical play. That's basketball. This doesn't feel like that from what I've seen. (which I'll admit is limited)

 

[FarFromHome]

Just saw Kelsey Plum's interview comments about the decision to wear those shirts before all Star game. What a weird thing to say and a weird time to make that comment about Clark. She is supposed to be the veteran spokesman. Unless it's an inside joke between her and Clark that just felt very disrespectful and mean girl like. Imo

I was listening some guy on Sirius yesterday and he's claiming that whole comment was a joke. I guess "Team Clark" (the all-star team, not Clark personally or "her people") were all over social media the night before partying their asses off at the club. So the joke was that they were too hung over to make the early morning meeting about the shirts. (not that they were excluded)

Okay. That at least seems to make sense in my head.

 

[Leeroy Jenkins]

Just saw Kelsey Plum's interview comments about the decision to wear those shirts before all Star game. What a weird thing to say and a weird time to make that comment about Clark. She is supposed to be the veteran spokesman. Unless it's an inside joke between her and Clark that just felt very disrespectful and mean girl like. Imo

Correct me if I am wrong, but by "Team Clark" there she was referencing the All-Star team that she drafted, not Caitlyn and her marketing team or whatever, right? So other WNBA players were included in that reference -- not just her.

 

[-OZ-]

Hey guys I hate to break it to you.

Do you know the best way to slow down Patrick Mahomes or Tom Brady?

I don't want to alarm you, but it involves physicality.

Lmao guys get penalized for looking at these guys the wrong way

Which basically started during Brady and Peyton’s career. Coincidence?

 

[SWC]

man it is a crazy changing landscape and i guess that probably adds to some of the racial undertones for instance since caitlyn clark entered the wnba viewership of wnba games by non hispanic whites has gone up 156 percent on ion and 301 percent on espn per a july 23 2024 article in the sports business journal and according to rolling stone ticket sales for the wnba were up 93 percent which is a crazy jump in 2024 caitlyn clarks first year versus 2023 when she was still in college and for the first time ever the wnba regularly started selling out arenas and normally for games againt the fever and as rolling stone notes you have this huge influx of new white middle american viewers and fans that you did not have before clark into a league that was by far one of the most progressive out there in terms of vocal support for racial equality gender and preference acceptance and whatnot and with that influx comes a change in the makeup of the average wnba supporter and a clash of more conservative values with what the wnba has always stood for which i think we see even in this thread and then to top all of that off there are studies that say that white wnba players in 2020 so long before clark received twice as much press coverage as nonwhite players and i can only imagine that is even more significant now but back to the point in 2020 sabrina ionescu a rookie received twice as much coverage as aja wilson who was the mvp and in the finals and at that time ionescu had only played in three games and left the bubble after being injured so what does that all mean well to me it means that there is a seismic shift going on in the wnba in terms of eyes on the sport and players behavior and what they say in press conferences and what they do on the court all with this racial undertone in a way that wbna players have never seen or experienced before and probably lack the media training to deal with as the wnba moves into major primetime and is followed by segments of traditional sports fans that did not follow it before as it was something of a niche league and along with that comes from a minority of players what i would best describe as a form of perhaps even unrealized jealousy regarding recognition press coverage and fan support from those that owned what what the wnba was when it was more niche league against caitlyn clark who by all accounts has been the cutting edge of the shift discussed above and unfortunately in a society hyper focused on race and with media doing anything to fuel clicks likes and subscribes every misstep or hard foul is hyper analyzed and beaten to death see alos this thread i think that the wnba will find its legs those things will go by the wayside and it will become the robust league that it is destined to become so bam swc citing sources take that to the bank brochachos

Racism's central role in WNBA coverage

An important study on WNBA media, plus some softball history.

www.powerplays.news

The WNBA Is Bigger Than Ever. Its Race Problem Is Only Growing

As the women's basketball league continues to expand, racial attacks against players are getting loud on social media

www.rollingstone.com

WNBA's viewership demographics seeing massive shift across all categories

The number of people watching the WNBA is not the only thing that has changed, but the makeup of the audience has also undergone a dramatic shift.

www.sportsbusinessjournal.com