A few days ago, Las Vegas Aces coach Becky Hammon pleaded with the media to “refrain” from suggesting that WNBA veterans dislike Kaitlyn Clark.
“We love Caitlin Clark. I think she’s amazing. I watch her every time I can. Our league loves her,” Hammon began.
Clarke later criticised the rhetoric around race, with her star player A’ja Wilson saying it had been a “huge factor” in her popularity.
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Las Vegas Aces head coach Becky Hammon watches a WNBA game against the Dallas Wings, Sunday, June 5, 2022, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/John Roach, File)
“And the black and white thing, stop it. It doesn’t exist. It doesn’t exist. So stop the fuss. Black and white, what is she, 22 years old? She’s a 22-year-old woman, she’s under a lot of pressure. She’s not perfect. She’s a rookie in this league. Stop it,” Hammon said.
Many took the remarks as a rebuke to Wilson, who stood right next to Hammon during the defense. Asked about the remarks, Hammon said the reporter had been “misinterpreted on several occasions.”
“It’s being interpreted as black and brown minority women hating on her because she’s white, which is not the case. Let’s leave Kaitlyn out of the picture. What pisses me off…it’s not Kaitlyn. Let’s give her flowers. She’s done something in college basketball that no one has ever done before – man, woman, black, white. Let’s give the woman flowers.” Hammon says:.
“But it also highlights how the greatness of Black and brown people has not been celebrated or appreciated as much, which is what I was talking about.”
The recent comments certainly seem to echo what Wilson said earlier this month.
Becky Hammon is honored as a member of the 2023 Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame Class of 2023 during a break in the 2023 NCAA Women’s Basketball Tournament National Championship game between the LSU Lady Tigers and Iowa Hawkeyes at the American Airlines Center on April 2, 2023 in Dallas, Texas. (C. Morgan Engel/NCAA Photo via Getty Images)
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“You can be a top-tier black woman and maybe people just don’t want to see that,” Wilson says. I said at the time“It doesn’t matter how hard I work because they don’t see it as marketable. No matter what all of us black women do, we still get ignored. So it pisses me off when people say it’s not about race, because it is.”
Before Friday’s game, Clarke was asked about the “narrative of attention” he was receiving “compared to some of the veteran players who have been in this league for a long time.”
“To be honest, I’m not a big social media user. I don’t read it.” Clark said. “This is my job. My job is to compete and play basketball every day. I think the more attention I get from every team in this league, the better I’m going to get.”
“My job is just to keep showing up and helping this team get better. We’re fighting for our first win. That’s my main goal.”
Las Vegas Aces head coach Becky Hammon celebrates with her family after defeating the New York Liberty in Game 4 of the 2023 WNBA Finals at Barclays Center in New York City on Oct. 18, 2023. The Aces defeated the Liberty, 70-69. (Sarah Steer/Getty Images)
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Clark and the Fever earned their first win on Friday night against the Sparks in front of a star-studded crowd at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles, with the rookie hitting a crucial 3-pointer late in the game.
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