‘Allowing Her To Jump the Line’ — Ex-NFL LB Backs Kareem Abdul-Jabbar for Shutting Down Caitlin Clark’s Hype
· Yahoo Sports
WNBA star Caitlin Clark had another poor shooting performance as the Indiana Fever slumped to an 88-75 loss to the Golden State Valkyries on Wednesday. Clark, whose frustration with the officiating boiled over once again, tallied 13 points, 3 rebounds, and 6 assists on 28.6% shooting from the floor and 12.5% shooting from beyond the arc.
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Emmanuel Acho Backs Kareem Abdul-Jabbar in Caitlin Clark Fallout
Clark has been dealing with a litany of off-court criticism due to her clashes with opponents and referees, as her status as the face of the WNBA has been debated extensively by fans and analysts.
NBA legend Kareem Abdul-Jabbar recently questioned a recent congressional letter sent to WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert requesting better treatment for Clark. In the letter, the Republican lawmakers threatened federal civil rights recriminations and called Clark the face of the league.
“My first reaction to this letter was to check the calendar and make sure it wasn’t April Fools’ Day,” Abdul-Jabbar wrote, per Complex. “Don’t get me wrong: Clark is a very good, possibly even a great, player. But calling any one player the face of the league, absent the sort of on-court and cross-platform dominance of a Michael Jordan or a LeBron James, is an insult to an awful lot of great players.”
Abdul-Jabbar’s criticism of Clark’s standing within the WNBA has reignited the debate about the Fever star’s treatment by officials and whether she merits the attention she has received over some veterans.
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During this week’s segment of the “Speakeasy” podcast, former NFL linebacker Emmanuel Acho agreed with Abdul-Jabbar’s sentiments regarding Clark’s standing in the WNBA.
“I agree wholeheartedly because at the end of the day, he didn’t say that Caitlin Clark did anything wrong,” Acho said. “What Kareem is saying, to utter somebody that is currently a good to really good player as the face of the league, is a disservice to the great players. To the A’ja Wilsons. In the NBA, you would never call a third-team All-NBA player the face of the league. In the NFL, you would never call a Pro Bowler who isn’t an All-Pro the face of the league.
“In tennis, Serena (Williams) became the face because she was one of the winningest tennis players of all time. In golf, Tiger (Woods) became the face because he is one of the winningest golfers of all time. Simone Biles in gymnastics, Michael Phelps in swimming. But for several reasons in the W (WNBA), we utter that Caitlin Clark is the face, yet she is not one of the winningest, greatest, yet in this short-lived career.”
Acho concluded by saying, “The W, because it doesn’t have the same legacy of some of these other sports, they’re allowing her to jump the line. So, I completely agree with what Kareem is saying.”
The Clark issue exploded when Phoenix Mercury forward Alyssa Thomas stuck her fist in the Fever star’s throat when the pair was scrambling for a loose ball in a game on June 24. While Thomas escaped punishment during the game, she was later hit with a flagrant-2 foul, a $1,000 fine, and a one-game suspension after the play was reviewed.
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Clark has sat out three of the Fever’s past six games and has been on a minutes restriction in some games due to a lingering back injury. Her form has nosedived in those three games, and she is shooting 35.1% from the floor and 15.8% from beyond the arc.