ESPN’s Monica McNutt is being accused of playing into ‘racial hysteria’ for her controversial theory on the popularity of WNBA superstar Caitlin Clark.

Asked by BBC‘s Katty Kay to explain the reason behind Clark’s widespread acceptance, McNutt pointed to Clark’s race and her midwestern roots.

‘Caitlin represented, and again, some of this to me probably is not fair to her, because it was not anything that she said or was truly based on her personality, but she was a white girl from the middle of America,’ McNutt said. ‘And so she represented a whole lot to a lot of people, whether that is truly what she prescribed to or not.’

Clark’s race has remained a constant source of controversy on both sides of the political aisle, from conservatives who see her as the target of supposedly jealous African-American rivals, to liberals who think she’s unfairly pulling the spotlight away from the league’s black stars.

Bobby Burack, a writer for Fox-owned Outkick.com, responded by calling McNutt a ‘fool,’ while also targeting her fellow ESPN hosts.

‘Is she an idiot (like Kendrick Perkins)?’ Burack asked. ‘Does she actually believe the manufactured racial hysteria (like Ryan Clark)? Or is she just gifting, knowing the upside of race-grifting as a black woman at ESPN (like Elle Duncan)? Hard to say.’

ESPN’s Monica McNutt is being accused of manufacturing ‘racial hysteria’ by conservatives

Caitlin Clark of the Fever interacts with fans after the game against the Minnesota Lynx

And the criticism continued on social media.

‘When did @ESPN become so woke and racist?’ one critic wrote on X.

Others insisted that Clark’s overwhelming ability is the source of the WNBA Rookie of the Year’s popularity.

‘White boys wanted to be [Michael Jordan], Kobe [Bryant], LeBron [James],’ one X user wrote. ‘Idk maybe it’s a skill dif.’

McNutt did get some support online.

‘She’s just stating the truth,’ wrote one man. ‘Don’t make it more than it is. We identify with people we look like, ever hear the old saying, ‘birds of a feather, flock together?’ It doesn’t mean we can’t have role models who look different than us, but it can be a factor.’

For her part, Clark remained on the sideline for much of the debate, but did acknowledge the existence of white privilege when accepting TIME’s Athlete of the Year honor.

‘I want to say I’ve earned every single thing, but as a white person, there is privilege,’ Clark said.

Her comments drew criticism in some quarters, notably from commentator and podcaster Megyn Kelly who bemoaned Clark’s ‘self-flagellation’.

‘She’s on the knee all but apologizing for being white and getting attention,’ Kelly wrote on social media.