UConn women’s coach slams ‘delusional’ Caitlin Clark fans: ‘So unknowledgeable’
LEFT:Indiana Fever guard Caitlin Clark (22) plays against the Los Angeles Sparks in the first half of a WNBA basketball game in Indianapolis, Tuesday, May 28, 2024. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy) RIGHT:UConn head coach Geno Auriemma reacts during the first half of a college basketball game in the semifinal round of the Women’s Final Four NCAA tournament Friday, April 1, 2022, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Eric Gay)
WASHINGTON (TND) — University of Connecticut women’s basketball head coach Geno Auriemma on Thursday did not hold back when discussing the recent treatment of star athlete Caitlin Clark by WNBA fans.
Clark was drafted by the Indiana Fever in April following a dominant collegiate career at the University of Iowa. She has since become a towering figure in conversations surrounding women’s athletics.
Auriemma in an appearance on the “Dan Patrick Show” said much of the discussion around Clark has been drawn along political party lines.
“I think you know the landscape we live in today both sportswise and non-sportswise,” he said. “We are in a red [versus] blue and if you’re red you can’t agree with blue and if you’re blue you can’t agree with red.”
Clark’s fans, he continued, likely do not understand what it takes to become a great athlete at such a high level.
The delusional fanbase that follows her disrespected the WNBA players by saying ‘she’s going to go into that league and tear it apart,’” Auriemma continued. “She’s third or fourth in betting odds of being MVP of the WNBA. These people are so disrespectful and so unknowledgeable and so stupid that it gives women’s basketball a bad name.”
The coach continued by saying Clark had been “set up for failure” by fans. This, combined with the fact she was drafted by a struggling team, has created unrealistic expectations for her performance in the league, according to him.
Rep. Jim Banks, R-Ind., on Tuesday demanded the WNBA answer for repeated fouls on Clark by other players. He said the matter is damaging to women and young girls watching the games.
“It is not only a disservice to Clark and the Indiana Fever, it’s a disservice to the million of young girls who are watching with dreams of playing in the WNBA one day,” Rep. Banks wrote.
