Phoenix Mercury guard Natasha Cloud took a shot at Elon Musk and other billionaires in posts on social media on Sunday after the passage of a stopgap funding bill to prevent a government shutdown.
Musk and President-elect Donald Trump led the conservative rebellion against the initial plan to avert a partial shutdown, a bipartisan deal that came from negotiations between the top two Democrats and Republicans in both congressional chambers.
That bill, 1,547 pages, would have extended current government funding levels until March 14. However, GOP hardliners were angered by what they saw as unrelated measures attached to the bill, like a pay raise for congressional lawmakers, health care policy provisions and legislation aimed at revitalizing RFK Stadium in Washington, D.C.
It was scrapped as Trump and Musk threatened to force out of office any lawmaker who did not support pairing a CR with action on the debt limit.
It caused a huge controversy in the political arena hours before the House eventually passed the bill.
"So when y’all gone tell Elon to go back to Africa?" Cloud wrote on X.
"Im so glad ALL these billionaires have no idea how the 3 branches of government work….or how a bill gets passed into law. Shoutout to the 38 Republicans who shot the bill down in the House while being threatened & blackmailed."
All Democrats voted in favor of the bill, except Rep. Jasmine Crockett, D-Texas, who voted "present."
Cloud has been outspoken about the U.S. in the past. After Trump won the election, she took a swipe at women who voted for the Republican candidate.
"The privilege of celebrating rn is exactly what’s wrong with us as people," she added. "I am truly worried about my fundamental human rights.
"Racism, misogyny, and hatred of women are so deeply rooted into everything that is America. Until we fix the roots…it will never grow."
WNBA legend Sue Bird and former U.S. women’s soccer star Megan Rapinoe weighed in on the backlash over Caitlin Clark’s remarks about White privilege in her interview with Time magazine.
The Indiana Fever star spoke about her supposed White privilege as she said the WNBA has been built on the backs of Black players.
"The more we can appreciate that, highlight that, talk about that and then continue to have brands and companies invest in those players that have made this league incredible, I think it’s very important," Clark said in the interview last week. "I have to continue to try to change that. The more we can elevate Black women, that’s going to be a beautiful thing."
Clark’s reaction sparked a ton of backlash on social media.
Bird said on the latest episode of her podcast with Rapinoe, "A Touch More," that the anger around the White privilege comments proved something about her fans.
"Now this faction of her fanbase which we’ve discussed before that is now disgusted with her acknowledging is just showing they were never really here for basketball," Bird said. "… Which by the way just proves that there are issues with race in this country. Like, to me, that just proves it. And I think where I’ve landed is I’d almost want to pose some questions."
Bird then wondered whether there would have been any outrage about the incidents Clark was involved in during the course of her rookie season if she were Black.
"I personally think she deserves to be Time Athlete of the Year," Bird continued. "I think she earned that, and she’s like, yeah, ‘I’ve done enough to earn this,’ and I agree and also is acknowledging her White privilege and that is something that you know you’re talking about your experience, that’s something I’ve had to acknowledge in my experience. I’ve won the championships, I’ve done the things, and there’s this other part to it that I’m also going to acknowledge.
"And that to me is just is the world we live in and to say it doesn’t exist is really saying you don’t live in the same world, or you’re not seeing the same things and that’s obviously the root of all the conversations that we see today, not just in women’s basketball, literally in our country period."
Bird added that, at the end of the day, her race did not score points.
Rapinoe took a shot at conservatives in her assessment.
"I think what Caitlin did in her quotes, or in the article, was speak explicitly about her White privilege, like and that is what is receiving so much criticism or backlash, and like that is the lesson," the former NWSL star said. "So, you know, for conservative media coming at her now that obviously they’re just showing their whole a--.
"If fans are upset about her saying that and just acknowledging what is true, I think that says a lot. But I think the more that you speak directly to it the clearer it becomes what your stance is, and then you can’t be used in that way. It doesn’t really leave your beliefs or your stance as a white player to any sort of interpretation.
"You’re taking the space and owning the narrative yourself. I think another thing that I’m constantly trying to think of and be aware of, and I want other people to be aware of also, anytime there is a positive story in women’s sports, the area, the sort of quote unquote area is immediately flooded with divisive narratives.
"But for all of us to just be aware of that, that anytime there’s anything positive or any honestly just any news at all in women’s sports, it’s just like immediately flooded with insanity and really divisive narratives. And I think to that, like when we as athletes are being used, when is your narrative, when is your likes being used, when are the things that you’re saying being used.
"You know the sort of like ecosystem of people in women’s sports that really do care about whether it’s you know athletes, fans, owners, people that work with teams, whatever. Like when are you being used by this like, sort of meta narrative or these like divisive narratives and to be really smart about that."
The Iowa Hawkeyes women's basketball team announced it will retire Caitlin Clark's jersey Feb. 2.
Clark's No. 22, which she wears for the Indiana Fever, will hang from the rafters at Carver-Hawkeye Arena after a ceremony honoring the program's most accomplished player.
Clark is expected to be in attendance, and the event will be broadcast on FOX.
"I'm forever proud to be a Hawkeye, and Iowa holds a special place in my heart that is bigger than just basketball," Clark said in the announcement.
"It means the world to me to receive this honor and to celebrate it with my family, friends and alumni. It will be a great feeling to look up in the rafters and see my jersey alongside those that I've admired for so long."
In four seasons at Iowa, Clark broke the NCAA's all-time scoring record among both men's and women's players, leading the team to the NCAA championship game twice. She was also a consensus National Player of the Year as a junior and senior.
Iowa athletic director Beth Goetz and famed alumni Henry and Patricia Tippie praised Clark's contributions in a joint statement.
"Caitlin Clark has not only redefined excellence on the court but has also inspired countless young athletes to pursue their dreams with passion and determination," the statement said.
"Her remarkable achievements have left an indelible mark on the University of Iowa and the world of women’s basketball. Retiring her number is a testament to her extraordinary contributions and a celebration of her legacy that will continue to inspire future generations. Hawkeye fans are eager to say thank you for so many incredible moments."
Clark was selected with the No. 1 pick in this year's WNBA Draft by the Fever after her Iowa career.
As a WNBA rookie in 2024, Clark set records for the most points and 3-pointers by a rookie in league history, while also becoming the first rookie to record a triple-double, a feat she accomplished twice. Her 337 assists not only were the most by a rookie, they were the most by any player ever in a single season.
Clark's jersey retirement will come just two months after Time magazine named her the publication's Athlete of The Year. The decision prompted praise, but also criticism from some, including Washington Mystics owner Sheila Johnson, who recently wondered in a CNN interview why Clark was chosen for the honor and not the entire WNBA. Johnson suggested it had to do with Clark's race.
Chicago Sky star Angel Reese revealed on the latest episode of her podcast that prisoners found out her mom’s address and started to write her love letters.
Reese, who attended Maryland before transferring to LSU and winning a national championship, said on "Unapologetically Angel" that her mom had to get police involved.
"When I was in college, somehow, some way, these men in jail used to send letters – like love letters. Somehow, one of them got my address, my mom’s address. And my mom had to like do all that and call the police and all that," she said.
"He talking about, ‘When I get out I’m coming for you. I’m going to be with you. We going to have kids.’ Sir, take a timeout."
Reese’s guest, Coco Jones, joked that the person who sent her the weird message should get an extra two years in prison for "scary behavior."
Reese, who is from Baltimore, played two seasons with the Terrapins before she transferred to LSU for her junior and senior seasons. She led the nation in scoring and rebounding during the 2022-23 season with 23 points and 15.4 rebounds per game.
She averaged 18.6 points and 13.4 rebounds per game.
The Sky selected her with the No. 7 overall pick in the 2024 WNBA Draft. She averaged 13.6 points and 13.1 rebounds per game in 34 games. Her season was cut short due to an injury.
Caitlin Clark's Time magazine cover was something Washington Mystics owner Sheila Johnson did not seem to appreciate after a record-breaking WNBA season.
Well, Clark's brother, Colin, appeared to send a jab back Johnson's way.
Colin Clark re-shared an old video from Front Office Sports on Sept. 19, which showed a record 20,711 fans in attendance at Capital One Arena in Washington for the Mystics’ game against his sister’s Indiana Fever.
It is the largest crowd to date in WNBA history, and the Mystics actually moved the game from its usual Entertainment and Sports Arena to the Capital One Arena to appease more fans in the 20,536-seat arena.
The WNBA saw its most-watched regular season in 24 years, while also seeing record attendance with a rookie class that was headlined by Clark, Angel Reese and others.
However, Clark’s presence as the No. 1 overall pick out of Iowa, where she already had a massive following as she became the all-time leading scorer in NCAA history, helped the WNBA’s viewership, social media engagement and more explode.
"I’ve been able to captivate so many people that have never watched women’s sports, let alone women’s basketball, and turn them into fans," Clark told Time in her interview with the magazine for her Athlete of the Year cover.
However, Johnson took exception with Time, believing the WNBA as a whole should have been highlighted instead of just Clark.
"Why couldn’t they have put the WNBA on that cover and say, ‘The WNBA is the league of the year,’ because of all the talent that we have," Johnson said in her interview with CNN Sport this past Friday.
"When you single out one player, it creates hard feelings, so now you’re starting to hear stories of racism within the WNBA, and I don’t want to hear that."
Johnson serves as vice chair of Monumental Sports & Entertainment, which also owns the Washington Wizards and Washington Capitals.
"It has taken the WNBA almost 28 to get to the point where we are now, and this year something clicked with the WNBA, and it's because of the draft of the players that came in, it's not just Caitlin Clark, it's Reese," Johnson said. "We have so much talent out there that's so unrecognized, and I don't think we can just pin it on one player."
Washington Mystics owner Sheila Johnson spoke out against Time magazine for naming Caitlin Clark "Athlete of the Year" in an interview with CNN Sport on Friday, suggesting that the publication should have given the award to the entire WNBA.
Johnson even suggested the decision to give Clark the honor would incite feelings of "racism" within the league.
"Why couldn’t they have put the WNBA on that cover and say, ‘The WNBA is the league of the year,’ because of all the talent that we have," Johnson said. "When you single out one player, it creates hard feelings, so now you’re starting to hear stories of racism within the WNBA, and I don’t want to hear that."
Johnson went so far as to claim that Clark’s attention and the minting of the term "the Caitlin Clark effect," which has been associated with the attention she has brought to the league, is because of race.
"It’s the way media plays out race," Johnson said. "I feel really bad, because I’ve seen so many players of color that are equally as talented, and they never got the recognition they should have."
The owner also griped about the fact that Clark got a $28 million endorsement deal with Nike in April, which was the richest sponsorship contract for a women's basketball player.
"They would like to get the same kind of recognition. It all started with the whole Nike sponsorship that Caitlin got," Johnson said. "There are other players saying, ‘What about us?’"
Johnson is the Vice Chairman of Monumental Sports & Entertainment, which also owns the NBA's Washington Wizards and NHL's Washington Capitals. Her Mystics directly capitalized on Clark's popularity to net historic ticket sales at the end of the regular season this year.
The Mystics' season finale against Clark's Indiana Fever was moved from the Mystics' home venue, the Entertainment and Sports Arena with just 4,200 seats, to the Wizards' venue, the Capital One Arena, which has a maximum capacity of 20,356 for basketball games. As a result, the Sept. 19 game between the Fever and Mystics was the most-attended WNBA regular season game in history, with 20,711 fans in attendance.
The Las Vegas Aces pulled off a similar move when they hosted the Fever at the larger T-Mobile Arena for a July 2 game instead of playing in the relatively smaller Michelob ULTRA Arena. For that game, 20,366 fans showed up, representing the highest regular-season single-game attendance since 1999.
Still, Johnson opted to publicly denigrate and undermine the attention that Clark gets in the CNN interview. Johnson also suggested that the WNBA's increase in popularity was also because of other WNBA rookies from the 2024 season, including Chicago Sky star Angel Reese.
"It has taken the WNBA almost 28 to get to the point where we are now, and this year something clicked with the WNBA, and it's because of the draft of the players that came in, it's not just Caitlin Clark, it's Reese," Johnson said. "We have so much talent out there that's so unrecognized, and I don't think we can just pin it on one player."
Johnson's Mystics did actually play a game against Reese's Sky at Capital One Arena this year as well, on June 6. However, that game only fetched 10,000 attendees – fewer than half the number at the game that featured Clark at the end of the season.
Johnson, the first Black woman to have a stake in three professional sports teams, is just one of many figures in sports and media to cite race for Clark's popularity in a negative light.
WNBA MVP A'ja Wilson has said Clark being White was a "huge thing" when it came to the rookie's popularity
In May, "The View" host Sunny Hostins said during an episode of that show that Clark's popularity was due, in part, to "white privilege."
Journalist Jemele Hill insisted it was "naive" to say that Clark's race as a White person, and sexuality as a straight woman, did not play into her popularity in the WNBA, where the vast majority of players are Black and many are lesbian, during an interview with the Los Angeles Times in May. Hill also insisted that Clark's popularity with those attributes is "problematic."
Former FS1 and ESPN host Skip Bayless, who was one of Clark's harshest critics leading up the start of her WNBA career, admitted that he pretended not to be impressed by her skill out of "guilt," and not wanting to stir racial division. He went so far as to suggest that Clark had become a "right-wing symbol" due to the fact that she is a White player excelling at the game of basketball.
Clark has been forced to answer questions about her race and alleged racism by her fans multiple times since coming into WNBA this year, including in the Time magazine profile that Johnson criticized.
"I want to say I’ve earned every single thing, but as a White person, there is privilege," Clark told Time. "A lot of those players in the league that have been really good have been Black players. This league has kind of been built on them."
Johnson says she doesn't believe that Clark had to make the statement, but that she "applauds" the phenom for doing so.
Caitlin Clark's recent comment about benefiting from White privilege in the WNBA has fueled hostile online debates since it was published in Time magazine on Tuesday. Former NCAA swimmer and OutKick host Riley Gaines got in on the action in her latest online debate with a left-wing figure.
This time, Gaines took on journalist Jemele Hill, who has been a staunch critic of Clark and those who have given the WNBA phenom credit for elevating the league.
Hill threw the first punch against Gaines, re-sharing a post on X, where the former swimmer criticized Clark for the comments.
"You holler all the time about supporting and ‘protecting’ women, and yet the moment that Caitlin Clark expresses appreciation and respect for the Black women in the WNBA (many of whom she grew up watching and idolizing), suddenly you’re acting like a disappointed parent," Hill wrote.
Gaines quickly clapped back, responding to Hill's post by mocking the idea of "White privilege" in the WNBA.
"'White privilege' in the WNBA is literally hilarious. Maybe you're like Sunny Hostin & think CC also has tall privilege, pretty privilege, and straight privilege," Gaines wrote. "Theres lots of Black players in the WNBA I love [and] respect too, but I don't admire them because they're Black. I admire them for their game. That's the difference."
Gaines then doubled-down by re-sharing Hill's initial post with a screenshot of comments the journalist made in an interview with the Los Angeles Times back in May. In that article, Hill insisted it was "naive" to say Clark's race as a White person and sexuality as a straight woman did not play into her popularity in the WNBA, where the vast majority of players are Black and many are lesbian.
In that article, Hill also insisted that Clark's popularity with those attributes are "problematic."
"Being a long-standing professional race baiter must be SO exhausting," Gaines quipped to Hill in response.
In June, Hill said that the fact that Clark did not make the U.S. Paris Olympic women's basketball team was a "good thing for her" and that her exclusion "wasn't a snub." Hill also criticized the media for pointing out that the WNBA's playoff ratings dropped after Clark's Indiana Fever were eliminated in the first round, calling the headlines "irresponsible."
When Clark made her latest comments about benefiting from White privilege with Time magazine, Hill made a post on X, seemingly mocking the player's fans who disagreed.
"If you’re mad at something so obvious, that means you were never a real fan of hers on the WNBA, you just liked her as long as she could be your avatar to hate on Black and queer women," Hill wrote on Wednesday.
Then, after picking the fight with Gaines on the topic, Hill went so far as to make it personal.
After Gaines' comment about Hill being a professional race-baiter, Hill responded with a message mocking the former swimmer for an incident when she tied with trans athlete Lia Thomas at the 2022 NCAA women's swimming championships.
"Girl, you need to thank Lia Thomas every day of your life for helping you get famous, otherwise you would have been just a decent college swimmer that no one knew. You wrote the book on grifting — not me," Hill wrote.
Gaines' infamous tie to Thomas in 2022 helped ignite a national conversation about biological males competing as trans athletes against women and girls. Gaines quickly became nationally-known for the incident and has devoted her platform to advocating for the protection of female athletes from trans inclusion in competition and in locker rooms.
Gaines is also leading a lawsuit against the NCAA with other female athletes, accusing the governing body of violating their Title IX rights due to its policies on gender identity. The lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court in Atlanta, details the shock Gaines and other swimmers felt when they learned they would have to share a locker room with Thomas at the 2022 championships in Atlanta.
Additionally, Gaines did not let Hill's comment about her past slide on Thursday.
"How deeply regressive [and] utterly misogynistic for Jemele Hill to tell me to thank a man for the platform I have. Thank him for what? Violating us in the locker room? Stealing a national title from a deserving woman? Indirectly stripping us of our 1A rights? Just say you hate women," Gaines wrote in her response.
That was the last message that was sent in the exchange at the time of publication.
It would not be the first time Gaines had the final say in an X debate with a left-leaning opponent.
In a September spat with Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban, Gaines argued the notion that Vice President Kamala Harris has done a "good job" handling the border crisis.
Gaines ended up with the last word in that debate, as Cuban did not respond to Gaines' thread when she brought up that Harris' proposed border bill included funding for Ukraine and Israel and that more than 320,000 migrant children went missing while crossing the border during Harris' handling of the border.
Gaines also got in on a viral roast session of Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y. on Nov. 14, after it was discovered the congresswoman removed pronouns from her X bio. Gaines made multiple posts shredding Ocasio-Cortez a week after the congresswoman criticized Green Party vice presidential candidate Butch Ware for standing against trans athletes in women's sports.
Gaines took aim at Harris herself after the losing presidential candidate posted a surprise video on social media to her supporters.
"Now do you understand why she didn't go on Joe Rogan lol," Gaines wrote.
Each of Gaines' spats with the liberal figures has been met with roaring engagement from her followers.
StubHub saw wild numbers in WNBA ticket sales, most notably for Clark's Indiana Fever.
According to StubHub, total sales for the 2024 WNBA regular season were up nearly 10 times compared to the 2023 season, with every team seeing an increase in sales.
But no team saw more growth than the Fever, who had 90 times more tickets sold on StubHub this season than in 2023. The team with the second-highest increase was Angel Reese's Chicago Sky, and the Fever's sales were nearly double (93% more).
Several WNBA playoff games without Clark still had fewer viewers than Clark's regular-season games, and the Clark-Reese battles had viewership that hadn't been seen in over two decades.
Clark was named the Rookie of the Year for her historic campaign during which she set the record for the most assists in one season in league history.
Clark carried the Fever to a playoff appearance after a slow start, and she quickly became a double-double machine. She even set a single-game record with 19 assists. She also became the first rookie to record a triple-double, registering two of them.
She received the most votes for the All-Star Game and was just the fifth rookie in league history to make the All-WNBA first-team.
Four-time WNBA champion Sheryl Swoopes has been one of Caitlin Clark’s most outspoken critics.
But Swoopes was left speechless during a recent podcast appearance after being asked about the Indiana Fever star’s remarks about her privilege as a White athlete in an interview with Time magazine after being named Athlete of the Year.
Swoopes, who was the first player ever signed to the WNBA, admitted on the "Gil’s Arena" podcast Wednesday that Clark receiving the honor was "great" for the league, but she questioned the criteria for what went into Time’s selection.
"I don’t think I’m surprised. I’m curious to know who the other candidates were. But the fact that that’s the very first WNBA player to ever win Time magazine Athlete of the Year is pretty special.
"My question is — like the criteria — is it based off her performance on the court, which, yeah, she had a great year. Or is it more about the impact that she had on the game this season.
"I think it's great, not just for her. I think it's great for the league, right? Like everybody talked about the recognition she brought to the W this season, and, so, for her to be Time magazine Athlete of the Year I think it's really great for the league."
But Swoopes had less to say when she was asked what she thought of Clark’s admission to the magazine that she benefited from her privilege.
"I want to say I’ve earned every single thing, but as a White person, there is privilege," Clark said in the interview.
"A lot of those players in the league that have been really good have been Black players. This league has kind of been built on them. The more we can appreciate that, highlight that, talk about that, and then continue to have brands and companies invest in those players that have made this league incredible, I think it’s very important. I have to continue to try to change that. The more we can elevate Black women, that’s going to be a beautiful thing."
When asked during Wednesday’s podcast about those remarks, Swoopes said nothing.
She appeared to raise an eyebrow and nod before the topic was changed.
Swoopes has faced criticism in the past over her hot takes on Clark. In September, Swoopes said she didn’t think Clark was "dominating" the league. Clark was later named WNBA Rookie of the Year.
WNBA phenom Caitlin Clark said during an interview with Time magazine that Taylor Swift invited her to watch a Kansas City Chiefs game.
The publication named Clark its Athlete of The Year, reporting on her interactions with Swift in recent months. Clark said she met Swift and Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce in person after attending two shows on the singer's Eras Tour.
"People are just going crazy that I’m there," Clark said. "I thought people would be so in their own world, ready to see Taylor. And it was just completely the opposite."
Swift's invitation to watch a Chiefs game would give Clark the opportunity to watch her favorite team with her favorite musical artist. Clark has previously said Swift is her favorite artist and welcomed Swift to the Chiefs fan base when the singer's relationship with Kelce went public in September 2023.
The invite also came during a year in which Swift has been visibly distant from Brittany Mahomes, the wife of Kelce's teammate, Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes, compared to last season.
Swift stood or sat alongside Brittany in the same suite for nearly every game last year. However, this year, Swift was only seen with Mahomes twice at games — Oct. 7 against the Saints and Nov. 4 against the Buccaneers.
The duo made headlines at the Chiefs' first game against the Ravens when they sat in separate suites to open the season. The two sat separately after Brittany incited backlash for publicly liking a post by Donald Trump on Instagram. Swift fan groups on social media were partially responsible for circulating screenshots of Brittany's like of Trump's post.
Trump even weighed in on the controversy after Swift endorsed Kamala Harris for president Sept. 10. In an interview on "Fox & Friends" the next day, Trump said he liked Brittany "much better" than Swift.
After Trump sent a post on Truth Social that said "I HATE TAYLOR SWIFT!," many of her fans called on Mahomes to disavow all of her support for Trump.
However, Mahomes never did that. She simply kept going to Chiefs games, sometimes sitting beside Swift and sometimes sitting with someone else, including model Paige Buechele, the wife of Chiefs backup quarterback Shane Buechele, in a game against the Buffalo Bills Nov. 17.
Clark declined to endorse any political candidate before the recent election, but she did like the Instagram post Swift used to endorse Harris. Clark advocated for athletes to encourage fans to vote when asked about the like.
Clark was previously placed next to Swift on the cover of Time magazine's recent Inspiring Women special edition issue that featured eight women in positions of leadership, including multiple athletes.
WNBA MVP A'ja Wilson said Clark being White was a "huge thing" when it came to Clark's popularity. Angel Reese even said there had been "a lot of racism" from Iowa and Indiana Fever fans. Connecticut Sun player DiJonai Carrington, who poked Clark in the eye during a Connecticut playoff win over the Fever, previously criticized Clark for not doing more to call out racism.
In her discussion with Time, Clark seemed to agree with Wilson to an extent.
"I want to say I’ve earned every single thing, but as a White person, there is privilege," Clark told Time. "A lot of those players in the league that have been really good have been Black players. This league has kind of been built on them.
"The more we can appreciate that, highlight that, talk about that and then continue to have brands and companies invest in those players that have made this league incredible, I think it’s very important. I have to continue to try to change that. The more we can elevate Black women, that’s going to be a beautiful thing."
In June, Clark said she was unbothered by people using her name to push narratives.
"It's not something I can control. I don't put too much thought and time into thinking about things like that. To be honest, I don't see a lot of it," Clark said at the time.
"Like I've said, basketball's my job. Everything on the outside, I can't control that. So, I'm not going to spend time thinking about that. People can talk about what they want to talk about, create conversations about whatever it is, but I think, for myself, I'm just here to play basketball. I'm here to have fun. I'm here to help my team win. We've won three games, feel like we've been in a position to win a few more than that. My focus is on helping us do that. I don't pay much mind to all of that, to be honest."
Clark said in September racist fans are "trolls."
"Nobody in our league should be facing any sort of racism, disrespectful or hurtful comments and threats," she said at the time.
Clark was named the league's Rookie of the Year and helped the league draw historic attendance and viewership.
Indiana Fever superstar Caitlin Clark, who captivated basketball fans long before her arrival in the WNBA, was named Time’s Athlete of the Year on Tuesday following her historic rookie season.
Clark, 22, capped off a phenomenal rookie season packed with record-breaking performances and crowds with a playoff appearance – the first for Indiana since 2016 – and was named WNBA Rookie of the Year.
When asked by Time magazine how she would summarize this past year, Clark responded with one word: historic.
"I've been able to captivate so many people that have never watched women's sports, let alone women's basketball, and turn them into fans," she told the magazine.
Clark said the noise surrounding the league this past year felt "powerful."
"Instantly, everybody goes crazy," she continued. "People are invested in the game, they love the game, and that's what makes it so fun for me. These people aren't supporting women's sports to check a box. It’s going to be the new normal."
While women’s college basketball fans already recognized her, Clark became a household name during the 2023 March Madness tournament by leading Iowa to its first national championship game in program history for the women’s team. A rivalry between LSU’s Angel Reese, which would carry on into their professional careers, was born.
Iowa would fall to LSU, but Clark and the Hawkeyes would run it back the following year.
In her senior year, Clark would earn more honors, including eclipsing Pete Maravich as the NCAA Division I all-time scoring leader. She was drafted first overall by the Indiana Fever just a month later and her dominance continued.
Clark wrapped up her rookie season with more records in games played before sold out crowds (some at NBA arenas) and she would be crowned Rookie of the Year after being named an All-Star and just the fifth rookie in league history to make the All-WNBA First-Team.
But her success came amid controversy. Narratives around race, a divide between the old guard and the new, and even an Olympic snub surrounded Clark.
"I tell people I feel like the most controversial person," Clark told Time. "But I am not. It’s just because of all the storylines that surround me. I literally try to live and treat everybody in the same exact respectful, kind way. It just confuses me at times."
Clark has had an undeniable impact on the landscape of not just the WNBA, but women’s sports in general. The growth of the league and the focus on women’s sports is only the beginning.
"Personally, I'm just scratching the surface of what I can do and hopefully how I can change the world and impact people," she told Time magazine.
It was a historic year for the WNBA in 2024 with viewership skyrocketing, the emergence of new stars like Caitlin Clark leading to greater attendance and merchandise purchases and social media engagement flourishing.
There’s no doubt the addition of new stars in the league like Clark, Angel Reese and others, combined with perennial All-Stars like A’ja Wilson and Breanna Stewart, strengthened women’s basketball.
But for one WNBA prospect, the popularity of the game this year is just "the tip of the iceberg."
"Now that the WNBA has finally gotten its spark and this is the first year that it really popped off, it’s only going to get bigger from here," LSU star Flau’jae Johnson told Fox News Digital while discussing her NIL partnership with the Unrivaled basketball league co-founded by Stewart and Napheesa Collier.
"There’s going to be more stars, more storylines, more basketball players, more teams. That’s the most exciting part is that the league is still growing. It hasn’t even hit that peak yet."
Johnson is rare when it comes to college athletes in today’s NIL space. She prides herself on being one of the most marketable players with her budding rap career along with her social media influence.
But make no mistake, this is a woman who wakes up at 5 a.m. to get shots up to start her day. And she knows that two years from now, when she’s eligible for the WNBA Draft, she will be there waiting to join the pros.
And when she does, Johnson wants to be making history.
"It’s so much that’s going to come with this. There’s going to be first-time, million-dollar contracts. There’s going to be first-time this and first-time that. There’s going to be so much more history broken," she said excitedly.
Johnson believes the 2023 NCAA women’s basketball national championship was a turning point for the sport. It was a game in which she helped the Tigers beat Clark’s Iowa Hawkeyes.
Johnson is the latest example of stars being born before they even reach the pros.
"I think college basketball really took it through the roof if you ask me. If it wasn’t for the surge that year that we won the national championship, it wouldn’t be a thing. It would be a thing, but it wouldn’t be as big as it was now," Johnson said.
"That came from college, and it led to the pros with Caitlin and Angel going to the league. And it’s only going to keep doing that."
Along with Johnson, take UConn’s Paige Bueckers. She also has an NIL partnership with Unrivaled, and some believe she can have the same effect as Clark on the WNBA. She will likely go No. 1 overall to the Dallas Wings in the 2025 Draft.
And while they may be considered the "next generation," they’re already having an impact on those coming after them.
"It kind of hit me yesterday," Johnson said after her latest game. "One of my fans tagged me in a TikTok, and a girl had a big [number] four iced-out chain, and she came to our game for her birthday. I’m like, ‘That’s the most important day in your life. Your birthday.'
"We played a terrible team, blew them out by 100 points. She was so happy, and we were able to interact and all of that. But that just goes to show, like, she took her time to do that. My presence was valuable enough to her. So, I feel like I have to do more in that space."
Johnson has dipped her toes in just about every space she can, which requires a strong work ethic to make sure she can help lead the Tigers to another national championship.
But to say the future is bright for women’s basketball would be an understatement. Johnson said there is finally respect for how great these women can be on the hardwood.
"It's always been there," Johnson said of stars in the WNBA. "Stewie’s always been. Sue Bird’s always been there. It’s like the time is now, and once the time is now, you put all the resources, you put all the investments in it to make it bigger and better for the next generation. All the girls are going to do is get better. They’re going to be more confident watching all the girls in front of them."
"Tempo is pace. It’s speed. It’s a heartbeat. And it’s what you feel when you step into the streets of this city, and in the energy of the people who call Canada home," Teresa Resch, president of the Toronto Tempo, said in a press release. "As Canada’s WNBA team, I know the Tempo will set our own pace, move at a championship cadence, and inspire people across this country."
The Tempo logo reflects the team’s values instilled in the name.
The logo’s forward leaning motion represents the team’s desire for progress. The sharp angles and round curves are a nod to a team’s dynamic nature.
The six lines in the logo represent the five players on the court, with the sixth line representing the fans, the sixth player in the game.
"Tempo reflects what fans can expect from this team – including, of course, the in-game experience at the arena," Resch continued. "The sounds of the court. The beat of the music. The passion of the fans around you and the intensity of the players on the floor. Capturing all that energy, excitement and feeling was crucial as we chose the name for Canada’s WNBA team."
The WNBA awarded Toronto an expansion team back in May. The Tempo will be the league’s 14th team, and they will begin playing at Toronto’s Coca-Cola Coliseum in 2026.
The Golden State Valkyries, the WNBA’s 13th franchise, will begin selecting players to fill out their roster in the expansion draft on Friday.
The expansion draft for the Valkyries will be the first expansion draft held in the WNBA in 16 years.
The league will hold another expansion draft next year, as the Tempo are one of two franchises making their debut in 2026. Portland was also awarded an expansion team in September.
The groundbreaking Unrivaled basketball league isn’t just helping women in the WNBA. College basketball stars are getting a piece of the action as well.
LSU star Flau’Jae Johnson, who is one of the most recognizable women’s basketball players in college right now, is joining Unrivaled with an NIL partnership. She joins UConn Huskies star Paige Bueckers as the league’s first NIL athletes.
The player-owned 3-on-3 league, which was co-founded by WNBA stars Breanna Stewart and Napheesa Collier, is truly investing in women’s basketball players, with participating players getting equity opportunities as well as the highest average salaries in professional women’s sports history for a vested interest in the league’s success.
Johnson, though still playing for the Tigers and not yet allowed to enter the WNBA, will also be getting equity in the league as she collaborates with Unrivaled to develop content throughout its inaugural season, which tips off in January 2025.
"I think the equity is the most important part, just being able to be invested in something like that," Johnson told Fox News Digital. "And for me, being able to leverage my brand and to create business opportunities. That’s really what this NIL space is all about. When you’re in NIL, you literally have this short window where everybody wants to have you a part [of something], so to really leverage that into something that’s going to last for a long time. It’s going to be in my business portfolio and gain capital in the future, that’s a really big deal."
As a member of Forbes 30 Under 30 for 2025, Johnson knows a thing or two about the right NIL opportunities as she is the No. 1-ranked women’s basketball earner and No. 33 overall, according to On3, with $1.5 million in valuation.
But what sets Johnson apart from the rest is her surging rap career, as she’s signed under Jay-Z’s Roc Nation record label and has collaborated with industry superstars like Lil Wayne.
Johnson’s flourishing social media platforms, which includes two million on Instagram and 1.6 million on TikTok, makes her a true crossover star and someone Unrivaled wants, considering her unique skill set.
Johnson, though, has already been promoting Unrivaled due to her connection with Stewart.
"When they came to be about it, I was like, ‘Me and Stewie already have a relationship, because we’re both PUMA athletes,’" Johnson said. "So, it was kind of a no-brainer. But when I really seen all the marketing that was behind it, like all the players, the amount they were paying the players, it just felt very big. It felt like it was something really serious.
"Even before I’ve signed anything, I was already kind of promoting it. When we were on the PUMA tour, I was making sure people knew what was going on. We definitely talked about it."
The league appealed to many of the WNBA’s stars, including Johnson’s former LSU teammate Angel Reese, who is ready to make an impact here after a successful rookie campaign.
Other than the vested interest for the players, being able to stay home instead of going overseas in the offseason to continue making money playing basketball is something Johnson finds so important as she looks ahead to her own professional career.
"Leagues like this, women don’t have to go overseas anymore," she said. "Now, they could stay home, be playing in Miami where the sky is beautiful and collect a check. I think it’s so important what they’re doing – they’re really changing the game. Being somebody that’s going to be in the WNBA soon, having another option, this is big.
"This is big for the women, the girls coming up in high school, the girls coming up in college, it’s just big for women’s sports in general."
Jewell Loyd, a six-time WNBA All-Star and two-time champion, reportedly requested a trade from the Seattle Storm on Wednesday after the team closed its investigation into bullying allegations.
Loyd filed the complaint against Storm staff members alleging bullying and harassment, ESPN reported. The organization said an investigation could not yield any violations from Storm coaches.
"The Storm recently received internal allegations of potential workplace policy violations," the team told the outlet in a statement. "The organization retained an outside investigator to conduct an impartial investigation into the allegations. The investigation has been completed and there were no findings of policy violations or any discrimination, harassment, or bullying.
"To protect the integrity of the process, and to preserve confidentiality, we chose not to comment while the investigation was ongoing. The Storm will continue to provide a work environment in which all individuals are treated with respect."
The Storm selected Loyd with the No. 1 overall pick in 2015 out of Notre Dame. She was the WNBA Rookie of the Year that season and quickly became one of the centerpieces for the team alongside Breanna Stewart and Sue Bird.
Loyd even emerged as one of the faces of the WNBA as a whole, appearing in a State Farm commercial during the 2024 season. She won championships with the Storm in 2018 and 2020 and emerged as the focal point of the team once Stewart left for the New York Liberty and Bird retired.
Last season, Loyd averaged 19.7 points and 3.6 assists per game. Any trade would be massive for the team that lands her.
The Storm have had four head coaches since 2015 – Jenny Boucek, Dan Hughes, Gary Kloppenburg and Noelle Quinn.
The bullying and harassment allegations stemmed from points in the 2024 season with Quinn at the helm, according to the Sun-Times. Quinn is still the head coach going into the 2025 season.
Indiana University finance professor Ryan Brewer, who specializes in valuation, told the Indy Star that he estimated Caitlin Clark to be responsible for 26.5% of the WNBA's league-wide activity for the 2024 season, including attendance, merchandise sales and television.
Brewer went so far as to estimate that one of every six tickets sold at a WNBA arena can be attributed to Clark.
Meanwhile, Clark's WNBA salary this past season was $76,535. Her salary in 2025 will be $78,066.
It's not just the WNBA that is cashing in big off of Clark's underpaid presence, according to Brewer. The professor also estimated that Clark brings more than $36 million to the city of Indianapolis' economy per year.
"The numbers are so staggering," Brewer told the outlet. "They don't even seem real."
Clark's impact on the WNBA product and earning potential showed up in very clear indicators throughout the season, especially in the playoffs.
After Clark drew a WNBA record 1.84 million viewers to her first playoff game against the Connecticut Sun on Sept. 22, while competing with an NFL Sunday, she followed it up with another record audience of 2.54 million viewers for Game 2.
Clark and the Indiana Fever lost both those games, however, sending Clark home for the offseason.
After Clark's team was eliminated, the first game between the Aces and Liberty, a rematch of last year's WNBA finals between two of the league's most popular and successful teams, drew an audience of 929,000, ESPN announced – 50% less than the Fever's Game 1 against the Sun.
Meanwhile, Game 1 of the Sun-Lynx series had an audience of just around 650,000.
Both of those games have also fallen well behind some of Clark's regular season games in terms of viewership. In early September, Clark’s Indiana Fever played in front of a TV audience of 1.26 million viewers, in a game against the Minnesota Lynx that was played at the same time as a Week-1 Friday night NFL game between the Philadelphia Eagles and Green Bay Packers.
In Clark's first regular season finale against the Washington Mystics on Sept. 19, a total of 20,711 fans that showed up at Capital One Arena set a new record for the highest-attended WNBA regular-season contest.
Clark made the Fever the most-watched team in the WNBA by a landslide in her rookie year, as the 14 most-watched WNBA games of the season all included the Fever.
Clark's teammate, point guard Kelsey Mitchell, told reporters in September that Clark is the reason she has more attention and fans.
"I think the reality of it is that I don't think people would know without [Clark]," Mitchell said when asked about getting more attention and fans this season. "She's done an unbelievable job of bringing her own fans and people that support her, but, for me, I kinda laugh at it and I embrace it at the same time because I always flew under the radar. I've always kind of been that person that is very conservative, very introvert, so now I get to see the flip side of it."
Shooting guard Erica Wheeler told reporters that Clark's presence this season has resulted in the team needing to be more resilient to scrutiny.
"All we do is have fun with Caitlin Clark, who never takes anything seriously," Wheeler said. "I tell people all the time she’s really a kid at heart.… There’s moments where we need to be serious, and we are serious, but a majority of the time, we’re having fun. Because you gotta understand, the outside world was really trying to get inside this building. We just didn’t let it."
The 2025 WNBA regular season schedule was released on Monday, and the latest clash between Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese will be happening right away.
Clark’s Indiana Fever and Reese’s Chicago Sky will be going head-to-head to open their respective seasons on May 17 – one day after the league’s opening slate the day before.
This rivalry that goes back to their college days at Iowa and LSU quickly translated to the pros, as drama was seen in the Rookie of the Year race as well as their matchups on the court.
Clark went on to win Rookie of the Year this past season after setting numerous rookie and league records, but Reese quickly made her presence known as a fellow WNBA All-Star by impacting Chicago in her inaugural season as well.
Four meetings between the Fever and Sky were had last season, and each was more anticipated than the next as these two tried to best one another to help notch a win for their squad.
But it was Clark’s Fever who pulled off three wins out of the four meetings. In those games, though, Reese tallied more points and rebounds than Clark, though the floor general did best Reese in assists in all four games.
There were also some tense moments in those games, beginning with Reese’s teammate, Chennedy Carter’s flagrant foul on Clark early in the season that made national headlines and sparked tons of sports debate after the veteran guard checked the rookie to the ground in what many described as a cheap shot.
Then, on June 16, Clark was going in for a layup against the Sky when Reese came flying in to try to swat the ball away. Instead, her arm smacked Clark in the head, and she went down hard.
A flagrant 1 foul was called on Reese, who had to defend herself after the game, saying she was simply trying to make a play on the ball and not trying to hurt Clark.
Clark would say the same thing, understanding Reese was just trying to help her team in the moment.
Their performances, both in college and in the pros, have made each of them reach celebrity status that transcends sports. Reese even said on the opening episode of her podcast that the 2023 national championship game between her Tigers and Clark’s Hawkeyes "changed my life forever."
But that change has sometimes come with hate.
"I think it's really just the fans, her fans, the Iowa fans, now the Indiana fans, that are really just, they ride for her, and I respect that, respectfully," Reese said. "But sometimes it's very disrespectful. I think there's a lot of racism when it comes to it."
There’s no doubt Clark and Reese have each played a significant role in growing the game of women’s basketball and women’s sports in general, which led to the WNBA wasting no time getting them on the court immediately for their latest rivalry chapter.
Also worth noting about the WNBA schedule release is the newest franchise, the Golden State Valkyries, who tip off for their first-ever game on May 16 against the Los Angeles Sparks.
The New York Liberty, winners of the 2024 WNBA title, will see their ring ceremony on May 17 before their matchup with the Las Vegas Aces.
The Fever and Sky will have five meetings in the 2025 season.
Those names would include guys like Nikola Jokić, Luka Dončić, Giannis Antetokounmpo, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Jayson Tatum and Anthony Edwards, to name a few. And those guys aren't considered the best under 30. Those players are widely regarded as the game's best regardless of age.
But two talking heads say it's not even an argument.
"I literally did not care about women’s college basketball 10 years ago in any way, shape or form. So, I think some things have moved forward, just the quality of play is more fun to watch. She seems to be some sort of catalyst that is like before or after, and now we’re in the after," Simmons said.
"Her stardom in a way has changed many conversations about sports, I feel like, especially women’s sports," Chuck Klosterman added.
"Part of it is, it’s real difficult now for a guy to become famous in basketball at the collegiate level. It still seems very plausible for a woman."
Some of Clark's regular-season games drew bigger audiences than playoff games without her, and her matchups with Angel Reese drew some of the biggest audiences the league has seen.
On top of that, NBA ratings have been down, which was not the case before Clark became a pro.
WNBA star Angel Reese was not having it on Tuesday.
The Chicago Sky rookie went out of her way to respond to a user with less than 300 followers on X after he mocked her for missing layups.
Reese brought up her 39% shooting percentage as something to brag about in her impassioned clapback to the fan.
"Do you realize I got drafted seventh in my class while ‘missing layups’ as a ROOKIE shooting 39% on the year and was STILL an All-Star and that was the worst you’ll ever see me?" Reese wrote. "Or you just laid up with your dog at home hating Adam?"
Reese's response drew mixed responses on social media. Some fans praised her for standing up for herself, taking pride in her performance and expressing confidence about her future.
"[Angel Reese] = leader + competitor + great teammate …scary her best is yet to come!" one fan wrote.
Meanwhile, some critics on social media mocked her even further for boasting about shooting 39%.
"I’m really not trying to hate at all but 39% as a post player is absurd work," a critical user wrote in response.
Reese's shooting ability was not considered a strength of her game going into the WNBA after her championship college career at LSU. At 6 feet, 3-inches tall, Reese was considered a premier defender and rebounder. She lived up to that reputation as a rookie, while proving the doubters of her shooting ability very right.
She averaged 13.1 rebounds per game in 2024 and became the first player in WNBA history with three consecutive 20-plus rebound games. Reese at one point even broke the WNBA single-season assist record on Sept. 1. However, season-ending wrist surgery a few weeks later prevented her from holding the record, as eventual MVP A'ja Wilson broke the record for herself on Sept. 11.
As a shooter, Reese did not just shoot 39% from the field, but also shot 18.8% from 3-point range and just 73.6% at the free-throw line. She missed layups on multiple occasions in her first year.
However, the injury and the poor shooting has not stopped Reese from putting herself out there this year as a young pro sports star.
Her willingness to engage directly with low-profile social media users is resemblent to the infamous habits of NBA veteran superstar Kevin Durant.
In addition to frequent feisty social media exchanges with fans, Reese has become a podcast host and is even starting to make her name in the hip-hop industry.
Reese recently made an appearance on "Nick Cannon Presents: Wild 'n Out," a sketch comedy and battle rap improv show.
She launched her own podcast "Unapolagetically Angel" before she was even done with her rookie season and has kept releasing episodes every week, even after her WNBA season ended early due to a wrist injury in early September.
The podcast has stirred controversy multiple times, including the very first episode when she spoke out against fans of rival player Caitlin Clark, alleging they had sent her death threats and made explicit AI images of her and sent them to her family. In her most recent episode, Reese interviewed the ex-girlfriend of Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce about their past relationship. This interview brought about a flurry of criticism, particularly from fans of Kelce's new girlfriend, Taylor Swift.
