Stephen A. Smith Knows Why WNBA Players 'Resent' Caitlin Clark
Stephen A. Smith Knows Why WNBA Players 'Resent' Caitlin Clark originally appeared on The Spun.
Last night's chippiness in the Fever-Sun game received national attention in and around the basketball world. But Stephen A. Smith doesn't believe it's one-sided.
Tuesday night's Commissioner's Cup matchup saw WNBA superstar Caitlin Clark poked in the eye and shoved to the floor midway through the third quarter of Indiana's 17-point victory in a game that was testy throughout.
And while many have taken aim at Connecticut's players and their coach, Stephen A. points out that Caitlin hasn't minded playing the role of instigator throughout her career.
"Clearly, when it comes to Caitlin Clark, there's some resentment, as I've articulated before. What people are missing ... is that I have no problem with it whatsoever," Smith said on Wednesday's "First Take."
"Yes, there's resentment... this is much ado about nothing! In the heat of competition, tempers flare! Last time I checked, women got tempers just like men do. It ain't a problem! It ain't a problem at all! It ain't no big deal at all! I love it, personally."
"Caitlin Clark being that golden goose, that rising tide that's lifting all boats, I stand by my past proclamations that there's resentment towards her because of that. But I want to take it a step further: There's also resentment towards her because she instigates resentment towards her sometimes. ... The whole Angel Reese thing with her started because when Caitlin [Clark] was giving it to everybody else, she was the one waving her in their face."
Not everyone agrees with Stephen A.'s assessment — as evidenced by some people calling for Connecticut's Marina Mabrey to be "banned."
But at the end of the day, these are women athletes competing at the highest level. And much like it's happened in many other eras of basketball, when you can't do anything else to stop you a player you try getting physical.
The Sun clearly crossed a line and were penalized for it. And Caitlin kept draining threes while giving them their ninth L of the season.Stephen A. Smith Knows Why WNBA Players 'Resent' Caitlin Clark first appeared on The Spun on Jun 18, 2025
This story was originally reported by The Spun on Jun 18, 2025, where it first appeared.
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