WNBA Still Ungrateful: Angel Reese Throws Nasty Jab At Caitlin Clark After Win
Angel Reese is proud of the Chicago Sky's 2-1 record. And Reese wanted to remind the world it had nothing to do with Caitlin Clark.
Reese took a victory lap on social media after Thursday's 90-81 Sky win over the New York Liberty.
On the heels of plenty of unsolicited Caitlin Clark hate from players, coaches and pundits in the sports media, Reese jumped in with the critics to give her college rival a jab, which made Reese look petty (as Charles Barkley said).
BROOKLYN, NY - MAY 23: Angel Reese #5 of the Chicago Sky warms up before the game against the New York Liberty on May 23, 2024 in Brooklyn, New York. (Photo by Evan Yu/NBAE via Getty Images)
DALLAS, TEXAS - APRIL 02: Angel Reese #10 of the LSU Lady Tigers reacts towards Caitlin Clark #22 of the Iowa Hawkeyes during the fourth quarter during the 2023 NCAA Women's Basketball Tournament championship game at American Airlines Center on April 02, 2023 in Dallas, Texas. (Photo by Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)
By not wanting to make it about Caitlin Clark, she unintentionally made it about Clark.
Commenting on her win, Reese posted, "and that's on getting a WIN in a packed area not just cause of one player on our charter flight. #SKYTOWN."
She later deleted the tweet, but you can see a screenshot below.
Angel Reese deletes tweet that appeared aimed at Caitlin Clark. (Credit: Angel Reese/X)
Now, the jab could also be interpreted as a nudge toward Barkley. The TNT "Inside the NBA" pundit said that women should stop being petty over Clark's phenom status in the league and tear down their budding star.
Barkley's comments piggybacked off a sentiment similar to that of Lakers star LeBron James.
With The Clark Effect drawing record viewership for the WNBA, the league decided to bank on that popularity by funding charter flights for all their teams, funded for the next two years. WNBA players have complained that the league's slow roll-out has only included Clark's fever and one charter flight for the Minnesota Lynx thus far.
READ: Charles Barkley Mocks Jealous Women Complaining About Caitlin Clark's Popularity
WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert shared that the investment in charter flights would cost $25 million per season.
Charles Barkey argued against WNBA players and women surrounding the sport who took jabs at Clark against the benefits Clark brought to the struggling league, making them look ungrateful.
A WNBA coach, Minnesota's Cheryl Reeve, previously jabbed the WNBA and Clark for promoting Indiana Fever games. Las Vegas Aces forward A'ja Wilson argued that black players aren't afforded the same platform as Clark because of their skin color.
Clark has been box office but everyone around her reacts bitterly. Can this snowball into a major issue for the women's basketball league?
Caitlin Clark's draft night, when the Fever picked her first overall, generated 2.5 million viewers. People are looking up Fever games and tuning in to more WNBA games than ever. So why would these women mock Clark rather than embrace the star who is lifting the collective with her popularity?
CLEVELAND, OH - OCTOBER 25: A close up shot of NBA TNT Analyst, Charles Barkley talking on set before the New York Knicks game against the Cleveland Cavaliers on October 25, 2016 at Quicken Loans Arena in Cleveland, Ohio. (Photo by David Dow/NBAE via Getty Images)
A commenter on X replied to Reese, "Be sure to thank that one player that got y’all that charter flight to [sic]."
In a way, Reese's comments only increase the appeal of watching Caitlin Clark, especially for the face-offs between Clark and Reese.
Reese finished the win against New York with 13 points and nine rebounds.
Meanwhile, Clark's Indiana Fever sit at 0-5 after facing a rough slate of opponents to start the year, including the Liberty and Connecticut Sun.
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