Caitlin Clark is just 66 points away from becoming the top scorer in the history of NCAA women’s basketball. Clark currently holds the highest scoring average in the nation at 32.4 points per game. Barring any injuries, she is expected to break the record in the upcoming weeks.
Clark’s remarkable skills and accomplishments have brought more attention to women’s college basketball, even surpassing the viewership of an NBA game.
One would assume that her success would be celebrated and supported by fans of women’s basketball. However, that hasn’t been the case. Former WNBA player Sheryl Swoopes recently made a series of inaccurate claims in an attempt to undermine Clark’s achievements.
Swoopes argued that Clark’s record-breaking career should be taken with skepticism due to her playing an extra year of college basketball because of the Covid-19 pandemic, her alleged status as a non-true senior, her high number of shot attempts per game, and her age compared to her opponents.
In reality, Clark has played four seasons of college basketball and is indeed a true senior. She averages 20 shot attempts per game and is only 22 years old. Swoopes’ criticism seemed personal and carried a hint of racial resentment.
During her criticism, Swoopes wore a “Female, Fearless, and Black” T-shirt on Gilbert Arenas’ podcast, where he had recently discussed the idea of white players trying to take over the NBA from black players. The irony is hard to miss, considering that Caitlin Clark, a white woman, is excelling in a sport that is predominantly dominated by black athletes. As she prepares to enter the WNBA, where over 70% of players are black, Clark is likely to face similar backlash as white NBA players Nikola Jokic and Luka Doncic.
Jason Whitlock and Steve Kim discussed the challenges that Clark will face as a straight white woman in the next level of her career. They predict that she will encounter racism from black players and hostility from lesbian players due to her not being part of the LGBTQ community. They also anticipate that she will face an extremely hostile environment and potentially divisive locker-room politics.
Clark is likely to be labeled as “the Great White Hope” and be seen as the savior of the WNBA. This term was previously used by ESPN to describe the popularity of white NBA player Jokic, suggesting that white basketball players need special treatment to compete at the same level as black players.
The resentment towards white players in basketball is not a new phenomenon. Many people, both black and white, believe that white players require special treatment to be considered on par with their black counterparts. This sentiment has been expressed by various individuals, from Gilbert Arenas to Kendrick Perkins, from Stephen A. Smith to Michael Wilbon, from Montrezl Harrell to Draymond Green.
Clark is particularly vulnerable to racial hostility due to her involvement in a feud with LSU forward Angel Reese, who is black. Reese taunted Clark after defeating her team in the women’s national championship game, which some deemed classless. However, the media turned this incident into a discussion of double standards, with some claiming that black players are vilified for similar actions that white players are praised for.
The media coverage surrounding Clark and other athletes often revolves around race, dividing them based on skin color and perpetuating historical stereotypes. This approach is lazy and unproductive, yet it continues to be effective in maintaining the relevance of the media.
Unless Clark aligns herself with progressive social causes such as BLM, abortion rights, or support for trans athletes, she may find it difficult to escape the narrative of being a privileged white girl from Iowa. It is disheartening to witness individuals in their 50s attempting to diminish college students based solely on the color of their skin in order to gain attention and clout.