WNBA legend Sheryl Swoopes has taken issue with the talk every time the Indiana Fever rookie Caitlin Clark is fouled and highlighted what happened Sunday with Chicago Sky forward Angel Reese.
Reese punched Clark in the head as Clark was walking towards the basket for a lay-up. Reese was given a foul, which was upgraded to a Level 1 flagrant foul. It sparked a firestorm on social media.
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Caitlin Clark #22 of the Indiana Fever and Angel Reese #5 of the Chicago Sky watch a game at Gainbridge Fieldhouse on June 16, 2024 in Indianapolis. (Emilee Chinn/Getty Images)
Swoopes, who appeared on former NBA star Gilbert Arenas’ podcast “Gil’s Arena” Fans and those who talk about the WNBA cannot be under the impression that Clark was assaulted.
“That’s the clip they want to post because they’re going to get all these likes and reposts, but it’s a basketball game,” Swoopes said of Reese’s foul. “She hit her in the head, so of course it should be reclassified as flagrante delicto-1… Can we keep playing basketball?”
“My thing is, every time Caitlin gets fouled, you can’t make it look like she was assaulted. Fouls are a part of basketball. You can watch a lot of different games, players, and videos. … A’ja Wilson, when they played Dallas, A’ja had a bloody nose, a black eye. That’s the way basketball goes.”
Swoopes then pointed the finger at Reese and Clark, saying the foul was just a basketball play.
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San Francisco Mayor London Breed chats with basketball great Sheryl Swoopes, right, after a news conference to announce an expansion of the WNBA franchise to the San Francisco Bay Area at Chase Center in San Francisco on October 5, 2023. (D. Ross Cameron-USA TODAY Sports)
“You go on social media and you say, ‘Oh my God, she’s trying to get her out, she should be suspended,’ and who are you? And what did you do?”
Reese maintained There was nothing more to Clark’s fault.
“I can’t control the refs, and they affected the game, obviously, a lot tonight,” Reese said after the game. “You’re probably going to play this clip 20 times before Monday.”
“I think we were really strong a lot of times and didn’t get a lot of calls,” Reese added. “Looking back, I saw a lot of calls that weren’t made, I guess some people get a special whistle.”
Clark downplayed the fault.
Caitlin Clark, #22 of the Indiana Fever, warms up before a game against the Chicago Sky at Gainbridge Fieldhouse on June 16, 2024 in Indianapolis. (Emilee Chinn/Getty Images)
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“That’s just the way it is, you know, she’s trying to make a play on the ball and block,” Clark said. “I mean that happens and then those free throws when you have to shoot with nobody on the line are pretty tough. So I was just focusing on making those free throws.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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