Barstool founder Dave Portnoy defended Caitlin Clark following Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s viral comments about the Indiana Fever star being the face of the WNBA.
In his article on Substack on Tuesday, Abdul-Jabbar said labeling Clark as the face of the WNBA is an insult to the players before her. The Naismith Basketball Hall of Famer was expressing his reaction to the congressional letter sent to WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert.
In the letter, the 11 Republican lawmakers, led by Rep. August Pfluger, described Clark as “the face of the league.”
“Don’t get me wrong: Clark is a very good, possibly even a great, player,” Abdul-Jabbar wrote. “But calling any one player the face of the league, absent the sort of on-court and cross-platform dominance of a Michael Jordan or a LeBron James, is an insult to an awful lot of great players.”
On Wednesday, Portnoy, who once proclaimed himself a Clark fan, said the Fever star did not ask or label herself as the face of the WNBA.
“She’s always showed respect for those who came before her,” Portnoy tweeted. “She could squash this league like a bug if she started her own league. When she was asked to do NBA 3pt contest she said she wanted to do WNBA one 1st. … But she is by far the most popular player in the league by every metric possible.”
Portnoy also referenced Tennis legends Serena and Venus Williams, as well as Tiger Woods, who is widely regarded as the greatest golfer of all time:
“Was it disrespectful to past tennis players when Serena and Venus instantly became faces of women’s tennis or Tiger with golf? The market dictates who the face of the league is and it’s clearly Caitlin. This argument makes zero sense and is just steeped in jealousy and stupidity.”
Clark has been widely credited for the WNBA’s increase in popularity in recent years. Since the former Rookie of the Year’s arrival three seasons ago, the league has experienced record attendance and viewership numbers.
Dave Portnoy criticizes Cathy Engelbert following the latest intel about the Caitlin Clark-Alyssa Thomas incident
Dave Portnoy also shared his reaction to Sports Business Journal’s Tom Friend’s report on Wednesday that Cathy Engelbert was forced to discipline Alyssa Thomas. The Phoenix Mercury star was suspended for one game following an in-game incident wherein her fist made contact with Caitlin Clark’s throat.
In a tweet on Wednesday, Portnoy shared a quote from Friend’s article that revealed Engelbert is trying to “appease” other players by not showing favoritism towards Clark:
“‘Sources close to Engelbert have said she is an unenviable position — trying not to show favoritism toward the uber-popular Clark while also trying to appease players who believe they’ve been overshadowed by Clark.’ This paragraph kind of sum up the s**t show that is the WNBA.
“You need a strong leader and Cathy isn’t it.”
Portnoy attributed the improvements in the WNBA to Clarkl, referencing the new collective bargaining agreement, the chartered flights and the significant salary increase. He also blasted the “jealously” among players, saying the WNBA needs to capitalize on its “golden goose.”
Edited by Kim Daniel Rubinos
