Caitlin Clark has been the talk of NCAA basketball in recent months, but is Iowa’s star player taller than the NCAA men’s basketball tournament?
It’s an interesting debate and OutKick’s fearless frontman Clay Travis went all-in on social media Friday night.
Let’s break it down here.
CAITLIN CLARK IS STUNNING, BUT DON’T LET’S LET’S TAKE AWAY
The Wall Street Journal published an opinion article this insinuated that Caitlin Clark was more popular than the March Madness tournament. Author Laine Higgins argued that thanks to players like Iowa’s Clark and LSU’s Angel Reese, women’s soccer has been more popular this year than ever before.
Clay responded that the question was stupid and compared it to saying the WNBA was more popular than the NBA, which of course will never happen despite how atrocious Adam Silver’s league has been in recent years thanks to workload management excuses and more and more. shady calls from referees. Oh and hackers like Gregg Popovich.
Someone then responded that Caitlin Clark is the most important thing in all of NCAA sports right now. Which, as Clay rightly pointed out, was crazy talk, because everyone knows that high-level college football outplays any Iowa women’s basketball game.
Even last year’s men’s NCAA Tournament final between UConn and San Diego State (which no one cared about) drew 14.7 million viewers, while Clark’s LSU vs. Iowa final drew 9.9 million .
HOWEVER…
There is one thing I disagree with Clay on. (Sorry boss, but hey, that’s the essence of OutKick: freedom of expression!)
I believe Caitlin Clark is currently the most popular basketball player in the NCAA – both men’s and women’s.
Caitlin Clark is becoming a household name, attracting both die-hard and casual basketball fans. Fans came out in droves to see her play this season, causing Absolute SCENES at places like Rutgers when the two schools played each other. NIL deals are also coming now, with big names like Nike, and even Panini trading cards signing big deals with it. In Panini’s case, Clark became the first female athlete someday have an offer of souvenirs or trading cards with them.
I can’t think of a single men’s basketball player who generates as much buzz or dinner table conversation across the country. In fact, I would consider this year’s men’s class to be one of the least impressive due to generally dominant schools like Duke, Kentucky, Gonzaga not having as much of an impact this season.
But the numbers don’t lie when it comes to Caitlin Clark’s incredible impact.
It exploded on Google Trends.
And his social media following has been dominant compared to any other NCAA athlete.
But to think that Caitlin Clark is bigger than the entire men’s TOURNAMENT?
Absolutely not.
The thing is, a Caitlin Clark match might have one or two TVs at the bar, but the other 10 will still be showing the men’s matches.
How many of you are getting ready to fill out your March Madness women’s brackets? Exactly.
And let’s not forget the sports betting aspect, which should bring estimates of more than 2 BILLION DOLLARS in the coming weeks.
WHAT THIS SHOWS HOWEVER…
That’s when Bomani Jones and other hacks try to say that sports fans are racist or sexist, that they are absolutely full of it.
We want quality, competitive sports and superstars, regardless of what the athlete looks like. We supported Serena Williams during her last run at the US Open, we all agree that Sundays are better when Tiger Woods is competing and whether it’s Kerri Strug, Nancy Kerrigan or Simone Biles – We are proud to support the United States Women’s Team during the Olympic Games. (Although Megan Rapinoe made it extremely difficult at times.)
Ultimately, Caitlin Clark is an extraordinary player who revolutionized the sport of women’s basketball across the country – and is a role model for younger players as well.
It’s unfair for the Wall Street Journal to put it on a pedestal and claim it’s bigger than the men’s tournament.
WHAT DO YOU THINK? IS CAITLIN CLARK MORE POPULAR THAN THE MEN’S TOURNAMENT? Send me an email: Michael.Gunzelman@OutKick.com or tweet me: @TheGunzShow
