Four-time WNBA champion Sheryl Swoopes caused a major uproar recently when she attempted to downplay the accomplishments of Caitlin Clark, spreading several falsehoods about the Iowa star in the process. After facing significant backlash, Swoopes has since apologized to Clark for one of the lies she told, but only did so after speaking with LSU’s Angel Reese.
Swoopes’ criticisms of Clark came as she was on the verge of surpassing Kelsey Plum’s all-time scoring record of 3,527 points, which she achieved on February 15 against Michigan. Wearing a shirt that read ‘Female, Fearless, and Black,’ Swoopes argued that Clark’s record-breaking career should have an asterisk next to it because she played five seasons in college, is not a true senior, shoots 40 times per game, and is a 25-year-old playing against teenagers.
None of these claims are accurate. Clark is indeed a true senior, currently in the middle of her fourth season, averages around 20 shot attempts per game, and just turned 22-years-old in January.
Thousands of people immediately took to social media to call out Swoopes on her false statements. Shortly after her lies about Clark went viral, Swoopes made her account private. However, it didn’t take long for her to realize her mistakes and this past weekend, she admitted to them while sharing that she had reached out to Clark since the fallout.
Before contacting Clark, Swoopes took a rather unconventional route. During the Baylor – Texas Tech women’s basketball broadcast, Swoopes revealed that she first called Angel Reese shortly after her comments gained attention before deciding to send Clark a message.
“Honestly, a couple of weeks ago I reached out to Angel [Reese] and had a really good conversation with her over the phone and sent a message to Caitlin,” Swoopes said during the broadcast. “And she responded. She and I went back and forth. I won’t share what she said, I’ll leave that to her if she wants to share.”
Reese and Clark had a confrontation during last year’s national championship game, and Reese is portrayed as Clark’s main rival in the sport. It’s possible that Swoopes reached out to Reese simply to get Clark’s contact information, but given their history, it seems unlikely.
The fact that a 52-year-old Swoopes felt the need to talk to 21-year-old Reese before apologizing for the falsehoods she spread about Clark is quite peculiar. Even if we disregard the assumption that Swoopes sought advice from Reese on how to handle the Clark situation, it still doesn’t make sense for Reese to be the first person she contacted.
Regarding the apology, Swoopes admitted that she made a mistake in assuming Clark was in her fifth season at Iowa. However, she did not retract her comments about Clark shooting the ball 40 times per game or being 25-years-old.
“But I will say what I said to her was I made a mistake in saying it was your fifth year when it is your fourth,” Swoopes said. “I have nothing but respect for what she has done for the game. And, you know, if she wants to share her response and how the conversation went, I’ll leave that up to her. But it was a really good conversation.”
Mark covers a wide range of sports and closely follows everything happening in the world of golf. He obtained a degree in journalism and online media from the University of Tennessee, but you can judge his expertise for yourself. When he’s not working, there’s a high chance you’ll find him on the golf course.
According to the Source outkick.com