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Turns out, Time Athlete of the Year Caitlin Clark is not the MAGA representative that many of its followers thought. She made that clear after being honored by the outlet recently. In a wide-ranging interview, Clark, 22, the WNBA’s Rookie of the Year, expressed her views on the vitriol hurled at Black players on her behalf.
“I want to say I’ve earned every single thing, but as a white person, there is privilege,” Clark said. “A lot of those players in the league that have been really good have been Black players. This league has kind of been built on them. The more we can appreciate that, highlight that, talk about that, and then continue to have brands and companies invest in those players that have made this league incredible, I think it’s very important. I have to continue to try to change that. The more we can elevate Black women, that’s going to be a beautiful thing.”
Clark came onto the national scene when her University of Iowa Hawkeyes faced LSU in the national championship in 2023. It was a setup seemingly made in marketing heaven as Clark’s predominantly white team played LSU’s predominantly Black team. Their star, forward Angel Reese, known as the Bayou Barbie during her time at the school, was already a social media star and millionaire thanks to NIL. The LSU Tigers won and while Clark graduated without a national championship, she became the NCAA’s all-time leading scorer, men’s or women’s. (With an asterisk, as former college and Harlem Globetrotter star Lynette Woodward scored more points in the pre-NCAA era and with no 3-pt. shot.)
Clark was correctly predicted to be the WNBA’s top draft pick and headed to the Indiana Fever for one of the most controversial rookie years in sports. MAGA types and newbie WNBA fans showed up in droves for Clark. 31 of the 35 games she played in set attendance records. She signed what is believed to be the highest-ever contract signed by a female player with Nike to the tune of $28 million. Her presence in the league brought new attention to it and seemed to hit just when a combination of social media, NIL popularity, interest in the women’s college game and more came to an apex.
But the attention left others mystified as Black – and white – players in both college and the WNBA had been heralded before, though largely pre-social media and for a subset of sports fans who closely followed the league. Kobe Bryant was an early supporter of Oregon player Sabrina Ionescu, who, like Clark, is white and straight and just won a championship with the New York Liberty.
But Clark’s arrival lit up the league in a different way that weaponized her race, gender and sexual preference as a proxy for those who hated Black women and more specifically, Black lesbian women, as the league is openly accepting of its many LGBT+ players.
Though she says she stays off social media during the season, Clark’s every move was scrutinized. Known for her “logo” three-pointers, she struggled with turnovers early and the Fever struggled.
Hard fouls from other players including a hip check from Chicago Sky player Chennedy Carter turned into social media firestorms. Multiple WNBA players including Connecticut Suns star Dijonai Carrington, talked about the online harassment they were receiving up to an including death threats. After Clark was inadvertently poked in the eye by Carrington during a game, she was accused of doing so deliberately. When longtime sports journalist Christine Brennan asked Carrington if the move was “intentional” she almost rolled her eyes at the question and the WNBA Player’s Association filed a formal complaint asking that her credentials to cover the league be revoked.
Clark says she was oblivious to most of it during the season, although at one point she did respond to some of the chatter by making it clear she didn’t support racist attacks on her WNBA colleagues. That she has now made it crystal clear she doesn’t support the racism in her name, MAGA folks were angered by her comments.
Megyn Kelly was particularly critical saying, “She’s lost thousands of her fans and will never appease the race bullies in the WNBA.”
Comments on Kelly’s Twitter and Instagram feeds reflect that fans were “disappointed” by her comments and many said they wouldn’t continue to support Clark.
“She bent the knee to the mob for no reason at all,” another said. One poster said “She’s sold out to the dark side,” while one user posted, “She’s lost me as a fan for good.”
Watch The Fumble on Caitlin Clark below:
Clark’s page was also flooded with comments calling her “woke,” and saying that she didn’t have to apologize for being white. One user said “Her using the term ‘white privilege’ killed her career.”
One takeaway from the Time interview is that Clark is a competitor that doesn’t care what you think and doesn’t see herself as either the white saviour of a league that was already established nor does she see herself as the MAGA representative many of her fans took her for in her silence.
“I’m probably the most popular player in the league at the moment, and somebody a lot of people turn to to have a voice on this type of stuff,” Clark said. “I hope we can do a better job as a league of protecting our players and putting better resources around them to make it a safer environment. And obviously, there’s only so much you can police on social media, because we don’t have full control over social media. But there is real responsibility. I understand that, and I acknowledge that.”
As for the racists, homophobes and others who want to use her as a proxy for all the things they hate and fear?
“Just stop,” says Clark. “Because that’s not who I am.”
Watch her full Time Magazine interview with Maria Taylor below: