ESPN host Pat McAfee issued an apology and said he sent a message to Caitlin Clark after attempting to praise her in commentary on his show. McAfee, speaking theoretically as one of Clark’s detractors, used the term “white b—-“.
McAfee’s comments came as he tried pointing out that Clark is almost singularly the person responsible for an explosion of popularity benefitting the WNBA.
“What the WNBA currently has is what we like to describe as a cash cow. There is a superstar,” he said. “And we’re not saying that the players on the court need to act any differently. That’s the athletes are going to do what the athletes are going to do in any sport. I think we’re all learning, that the WNBA … that’s old-school football, baby.”
In short, hard fouls are to be expected with the arrival of a superstar in the league. And, he points out, there’s only one star making it easy to target.
“I would like the media people that continue to say, ‘This rookie class, this rookie class, this rookie class’. Nah, just call it for what it is – there’s one white b—- for the Indiana team who is a superstar,” he said.
Monday's Pat McAfee Show opened with a Caitlin Clark PowerPoint:
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) June 3, 2024
"I would like the media people that continue to say, 'This rookie class, this rookie class, this rookie class'. Nah, just call it for what it is — there's one white bitch for the Indiana team who is a superstar." pic.twitter.com/psGNQXts5O
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Pat McAfee Apologizes To Caitlin Clark
Contrary to media speculation, Pat McAfee’s comments were actually a poor attempt at impersonating Caitlin Clark’s haters.
He believes there is a racial element to the Indiana Fever star being targeted with hard fouls, hence his reference to her being “white.”
And the expletive is what Chicago Sky player Chennedy Carter is believed to have called Clark prior to planting her on the floor during a recent game.
Still, McAfee walked back the comment as best he could.
“I shouldn’t have used ‘white b—-‘ as a descriptor of Caitlin Clark. No matter the context,” he said on X. “Even if we’re talking about race being a reason for some of the stuff happening. I have way too much respect for her and women to put that into the universe.”
“My intentions when saying it were complimentary just like the entire segment but, a lot of folks are saying that it certainly wasn’t at all,” added McAfee. “That’s 100% on me and for that I apologize.”
The sports analyst said he sent a message of apology directly to Clark.
RELATED: Fever GM Demands WNBA ‘Cleanup The Crap’ After Angel Reese, Chennedy Carter Go After Caitlin Clark
Stephen A Smith Suggests Race Motivating Disdain For Clark
Stephen A. Smith, also a sports analyst for ESPN, seemed to suggest race is a motivating factor for the behavior of some WNBA players targeting Caitlin Clark.
“There are girls – young ladies – in the WNBA who are jealous of Caitlin Clark. She is a white girl that has come into the league,” Smith said on ESPN’s First Take.
Late in the third quarter of the Commissioner’s Cup on Saturday, Chicago Sky player Chennedy Carter blindsided Clark with a hip-check as she was focused on an inbounds play.
Her teammate Angel Reese was seen enthusiastically cheering the flagrant foul, then delivered her own elbow the following quarter.
It’s incredibly likely that Carter and Reese are motivated to a degree by jealousy. They’re lagging behind Clark in both statistics and adoration from the fans
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