Is Caitlin Clark Bigger Than The Men's NCAA Tournament? Clay Travis Debates Topic On Social Media

Caitlin Clark has been all the talk in recent months for NCAA basketball, but is the star Iowa player bigger than the NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament?

It's an interesting debate and one that OutKick's fearless leader Clay Travis went all-in on social media Friday night. 

Let's break it down here.

CAITLIN CLARK IS GREAT, BUT LET'S NOT GET CARRIED AWAY

The Wall Street Journal published an op-ed that insinuated that Caitlin Clark was more popular than the March Madness tournament. Author Laine Higgins argued that thanks to players like Iowa's Clark and LSU's Angel Reese, the women's game has been more popular this year than perhaps ever before. 

Clay responded that the question was a foolish one and compared it to saying that the WNBA was more popular than the NBA, which of course will never happen despite how atrocious Adam Silver's league has been in recent years thanks to workload management excuses and increasingly shady calls by referees. Oh, and hacks like Gregg Popovich. 

Someone then responded that Caitlin Clark is the biggest thing in all of NCAA sports right now. Which, as Clay correctly pointed out, was crazy talk, as everyone knows that top-tier college football outdraws any Iowa women's basketball game. 

Even last year's men's NCAA tournament final between UConn and San Diego State (that nobody cared about) brought in 14.7 million viewers, while Clark's LSU vs Iowa final brought in 9.9 million. 

HOWEVER…

There is one thing I disagree with Clay about. (Sorry boss, but hey, that's what OutKick is all about: free speech!)

I believe that Caitlin Clark is the most popular NCAA basketball player - both men's and women's - right now.

Caitlin Clark is becoming a household name, one that brings in both diehard and the casual basketball fan. Fans came out in droves to see her play this season - causing absolute SCENES at places like Rutgers when the two schools played each other. NIL deals are rolling in now as well, with big names like Nike, and even Panini trading cards signing big deals with her. In Panini's case, Clark became the first female athlete to ever have a memorabilia or trading card deal with them. 

I can't think of a single men's basketball player that is generating nearly that type of buzz or conversation at dinner tables across the country. In fact, I'd consider this year's men's class to be one of the least impressive due to typically dominant schools like Duke, Kentucky, Gonzaga not being nearly as impactful this season.

But the numbers don't lie for Caitlin Clark's incredible impact. 

She has exploded on Google Trends.

And her social media following has been dominant compared to any other NCAA athlete.

But to think that Caitlin Clark is bigger than the entire men's TOURNAMENT? 

Absolutely not. 

The fact of the matter is that a Caitlin Clark game may get one or two TVs at the bar, but the 10 other ones will all still be showing the men's games.

How many of you are getting ready to fill out your women's March Madness brackets? Exactly. 

And let's not forget the sports betting aspect, which is expected to bring estimates of over $2 BILLION in the coming weeks.

WHAT THIS DOES SHOW HOWEVER…

Is that when Bomani Jones and other hacks try to say that sports fans are racist or sexist, that they are absolutely full of it.

We want good, competitive sports and superstars - regardless of what the athlete looks like. We rooted for Serena Williams during her last U.S. Open run, we all agree Sunday's are better when Tiger Woods is competing and whether it was Kerri Strug, Nancy Kerrigan or Simone Biles - we proudly root for the women's Team USA during the Olympics. (Although Megan Rapinoe did make it extremely hard to do so at times.)

The bottom line is Caitlin Clark is an amazing player that has revolutionized the sport of basketball for women across the country - and is a role model to younger ones as well. 

It's unfair for the Wall Street Journal to put her on a pedestal and claim that she's bigger than the men's tournament. 

WHAT DO YOU THINK? IS CAITLIN CLARK MORE POPULAR THAN THE MEN'S TOURNAMENT?  Email me: Michael.Gunzelman@OutKick.com or tweet me: @TheGunzShow