The Summer Olympic Games are well underway, and on Monday night the U.S. women’s basketball team—a group of the top players in the nation—won their opening match against Japan. Though some admit that Clark might have performed well enough to be selected, the question of whether WNBA stars Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese should have been on the plane to Paris remains hotly debated.
Even in their rookie seasons, Clark and Reese are still being compared to one another, and rumors about their “rivalry” that began with their matchup in the 2023 NCAA championship game are still circulating. Despite the fact that both players had graduated from college, heated games between Reese’s Chicago Sky and Clark’s Indiana Fever only served to fuel rumors about their rivalry. However, a former NBA player with close ties to Indiana thinks there’s another explanation for why Clark and Reese have sparked such strong feelings, both in favor of and against them.
In an interview with USA Today Sports, Indiana Pacers great and Basketball Hall of Fame inductee Reggie Miller discussed how basketball coverage has changed significantly since his peak in the 1990s. According to him, Clark and Reese have suffered because of social media in a way that other women’s basketball trailblazers, like Lynette Woodard and Reggie’s sister Cheryl, did not really have to consider.
“The problem is with Caitlin and Angel and I’d say the last 15 years is social media,” Miller stated. “Cheryl and Lynette Woodard were never forced to deal with social media in the same way as Clark, Angel Reese, and Cam Brink.” Everybody has their own critique and opinion these days, and they all live in basements where they play video games and post comments in real time. You know, we had one beat reporter and one paper in Indiana when I played.”
However, as they say, pressure produces diamonds, and two of the WNBA’s jewels are Clark and Reese. Both rookies seem destined for superstardom after being chosen for the All-Star Game in Phoenix earlier this month. Clark leads the league in assists per game, and her dime to Reese during the All-Star Game at Footprint Center went viral right away. Reese leads the WNBA in offensive rebounds per game and ranks second in total rebounds per night.
While Reese is quite active on social media and appears to enjoy the conversation, Miller admires Clark’s notably different approach to posting online.
“Everyone has an opinion, and sometimes you (have to) just stop the noise, cut off the devices, and everything,” Miller stated. “I’ve heard good things about Caitlin; she does that. She doesn’t let a lot of things impact her and isn’t actively on it.”
