Caitlin Clark and Shannon Sharpe: USA Today Sports
Caitlin Clark has made sure she’s the talk of the WNBA even after the season’s resumption. First, she made it to the headlines for an impressive 29-point, 10-assist performance in the Indiana Fever’s win over the Phoenix Mercury. Later, the rookie went viral for being part of a chirpy contest against the Seattle Storm and a minor on-court altercation with Skylar Diggins-Smith. Addressing this same incident was Shannon Sharpe, who was quite furious when condemning Diggins-Smith and other WNBA players.
At one point of the Fever-Storm contest, Clark was getting the home crowd amped up as she returned to her team bench for a timeout. During this, Diggins-Smith sped up while walking to ensure that she could bump into the youngster.
Social media users weren’t pleased with the Storm guard for her actions. Joining the plethora of basketball enthusiasts was also Shannon Sharpe. The ESPN analyst took to his podcast – Nightcap – and seemed to be livid at the hatred that Clark was subjected to by her fellow WNBA players.
“Y’all see the woman speed up. Y’all see her. Caitlin Clark is getting the crowd and going. Y’all see Skylar Diggins speed up to make contact with her. Stop this,” Sharpe stated.
The NFL Hall-Of-Famer also called out the WNBA players for hating on the 22-year-old, despite her success in the league.
Y’all mad because that corn-fed Iowa girl busting y’all [expletive]. Y’all say she too weak, she can’t do this. She lead the WNBA in assists. She cooking. Let her cook. Let her cook,” Sharpe said.
Despite the hostile environment that the remaining WNBA players have created for the 22-year-old since she stepped into the league, Clark has been thriving. Before the league went on its mid-season break, she began recording points-assists double-doubles that contributed to the team’s victory.
Many expected her to witness a dip in her production for the first few games after the break concluded. However, the sharpshooter has taken the world by surprise, putting up stats better than ever before. By averaging 26 points, 9.5 assists, and 5 rebounds on 48.7% FG, the 2024 Rookie of the Year frontrunner has been crucial for the Indiana side beginning their second half of the campaign 2-0.
