Former ESPN host Jemele Hill says Caitlin Clark owes part of her “value” as a marketable WNBA player to her race and sexuality.
The Indiana Fever player took the nation by storm last year after setting an all-time scoring record in his senior season and becoming the No. 1 pick in the 2024 WNBA Draft.
Since then, Clark’s success has attracted significant media attention, with thousands of people attending her matches and millions watching from home. She also signed a lucrative $28 million Nike sponsorship deal shortly after her graduation.
Caitlin Clark, No. 22 of the Indiana Fever, crosses the court during the first quarter of a game against the New York Liberty at Gainbridge Fieldhouse on May 16, 2024 in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Dylan Buell/Getty Images)
But the LA Times wrote that Clark’s success “raises questions of race and equity” in a league where 70% of Black players and nearly one-third of players are LGBTQ.
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“We would all be very naive if we didn’t say that her race and her sexuality have influenced her popularity,” said Atlantic writer Jemele Hill. LA Times. “So many people, including players, are happy about Caitlin’s success, which has such a huge impact on the game, but it’s a bit of a problem because it speaks to the value and marketability of the game. There’s a certain part of it that’s like, “The players who are already there.” ”
Hill specifically accused brands like Nike of helping to ignore more diverse players, claiming that “Black women are often erased from the picture.”
The Los Angeles Times reports that Clark’s success has intensified discussions about race in the WNBA. (Elsa/Getty Images)
“There’s a lot of room to highlight and celebrate Caitlin Clark’s popularity, but there’s also a lot of room to discuss how to not erase Black women from the league that Black women built and continue to build,” Hill said. .
Nicole Melton, co-director of the University of Massachusetts Institute for Sport Diversity and Diversity, also said Clark’s popularity is contributing to his “comfortable” image.
“Kailtin fits into a story that is very comforting to many people in the United States,” Melton said. “She’s from a core region. She’s a great talent. She’s also a white, straight woman, right? There’s not a lot that people would be offended by for that person to be successful. ”
The LA Times article followed similar comments earlier this month by Las Vegas Aces center A’ja Wilson, who suggested Clark’s race was a factor in her popularity.
WNBA player A’ja Wilson claimed her race was a “huge thing” for Clark’s rise to popularity. (Getty Images)
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“I think this is a huge deal. A lot of people might say this isn’t a black and white issue, but to me it is,” Wilson said. “It’s actually because I, as a black woman, can be on top of my game. But maybe that’s not what I want people to see.”
Wilson further added, “It doesn’t matter how hard I work because they don’t think it’s marketable. It doesn’t matter what we all do as black women, we… It will still be swept under the rug.” Why my blood boils when people say this is not a race issue, because it is a race issue. ”
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