The basketball phenom otherwise known as Caitlin Clark has been in the news a lot in recent weeks thanks in part to controversies that originated with people not named Caitlin Clark regarding the debate over her impact on the sport as she heads to the WNBA.
There was the Very Online Left becoming triggered over Clark's appearance on Saturday Night Live, with some wondering why the "loser" in the NCAA Women's Basketball Tournament was given a guest stint instead of anyone on the winning team (the South Carolina Gamecocks). The consensus seemed to be that race was a factor because of course, the woke left would think that.
There was also former WNBA player Sheryl Swoopes walking back comments she made downplaying Clark's all-time leading scorer record.
Then there was Joe Biden joining in on the action with a shamelessly opportunistic ding at Clark's contract and calling for female players to get paid their "fair share," on par with what their male counterparts do.
READ: Biden Denounces Caitlin Clark's WNBA Contract, Accidentally Caricatures Democrat Party Tenets
The latest controversy unfolded Wednesday during an Indiana Fever presser. Clark found herself on the receiving end of what some described as "creepy" comments from Indianapolis Star columnist Gregg Doyel.
Instead of me describing them, let's roll the tape instead to see how things went down:
Reporter: 🫶
— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) April 17, 2024
Caitlin Clark: "You like that?"
Reporter: "I like that you're here."
Caitlin: "Yeah, I do that at my family after every game.”
Reporter: "Start doing it to me and we'll get along just fine."
Caitlin: 😳
(via @IndianaFever / YT)pic.twitter.com/BBjU881K7a
Though that was indeed awkward and a touch on the creepy side, it's not something I'd need smelling salts over.
There was also the follow-up question to Clark's coach Christie Sides, where Doyel referred to Clark as "it" and "that":
Soooo, how do you explain this follow up question then? pic.twitter.com/5p4pVV7nmf https://t.co/IA9ezaTzEO
— Allie (@Allie874) April 17, 2024
Backlash quickly ensued to the point that hours after their interaction, Doyle was apologizing on the Twitter machine:
Today in my uniquely oafish way, while welcoming @CaitlinClark22 to Indy, I formed my hands into her signature 🫶. My comment afterward was clumsy and awkward. I sincerely apologize. Please know my heart (literally and figuratively) was well-intentioned. I will do better.
— Gregg Doyel (@GreggDoyelStar) April 17, 2024
A few hours after that, a column he wrote about what happened was published on the Star's website. Doyel was as contrite as he could possibly be, claiming that he's treated other sports figures similarly but noting that, unlike the others, Clark is a woman :
I’ve done this for years with Colts coaches Chuck Pagano, Frank Reich and Shane Steichen. I’ve done it with Purdue players Carsen Edwards and Zach Edey. I did it with IU’s Romeo Langford, talking to them as people, not athletes.
Notice something about all those names?
They’re all men.
On the one hand, yes absolutely, male and female athletes should be treated the same. I’m talking about coverage, respect, compensation, terminology, you name it. Stories have been written about idiots who say or act otherwise.
And then, along comes a story about another insensitive man, which goes viral on social media, and I decided to write about that idiot.
Me.
It was, in a way, a contradictory argument to make considering his declarations about how male and female sports figures should be treated the same for all the reasons mentioned above but then turned around and suggested that females should be treated differently because of their sex.
But inadvertently, it did raise a point about how there are women who want it both ways, to be treated as "equals" but who shriek at the first perceived slight, some of the same alleged slights men have been encountering (and not batting an eyelash over) for decades.
To her credit, it doesn't appear that Clark is one of those women. I mean let's face it, in a one-on-one scrap she could probably take out Doyel without breaking a sweat as she seems to hold her own well against people who are bigger and stronger than her. Further, she's got much bigger fish to fry than Doyel.
I mean, can you imagine Clark surrounding herself with an entourage full of people waving around those handheld folding fans in her direction? I think not.
Also to her credit, though she is THE story in the WNBA right now, Clark is branding herself as more of a team player than a star player, something my colleague Jerry Wilson has previously observed about Clark.
In essence, from what little I know of Clark, she's the anti-Megan Rapinoe in that Clark doesn't make it about herself but her team. That is definitely a plus as far as I'm concerned.
But back to Doyel, I didn't clutch pearls when I watched the video. Though I did find it incredibly cringe, it didn't rise to the level of a firing offense, which is unfortunately how the perpetually outraged are continuing to treat this whole saga. Unfortunately for Doyel, his profuse walkback likely won't be enough. Because cancel culturalists, as we all know, are never content with apologies. It's scalps or nothing else.
Flashback:
Outrage Mob Swarms Tony Romo Over Joke About Gisele Bündchen and I Have Thoughts
NFL Announcer Praises Female Football Fans, the Idiotic Reactions Were About as 2020 as It Gets
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