Lobbing attacks at the Indiana Fever rookie’s WNBA rivals, coaches and pundits, Whitlock began his rant by claiming that Clark is the victim of ‘bigotry’ from a ‘the gaggle of angry and jealous black women’ around the league.
‘[Chicago Sky rookie] Angel Reese, [retired] Sheryl Swoopes, [Sky guard] Diamond Deshields, [Sky forward] Chennedy Carter, [Chicago coach] Teresa Weatherspoon, [retired] Lisa Leslie, [South Carolina coach and former WNBA star] Dawn Staley and the last remanence of Black Twitter, they’re no match for Clark’s basketball prowess,’ Whitlock began. ‘They are the Seven Dwarfs. You have to use Google to remember their name: Sleezy Reese, Grumpy Swoopes, Dopey DeShields, Angry Carter, Bashful Leslie, Weavey Weatherspoon.
‘Staley is, of course, the evil queen of women’s hoops,’ Whitlock continued. ‘She’s the puppet master secretly pulling the strings of bigotry that denied Clark a spot on the Olympic team and fueled the petty commentary surrounding the WNBA’s Rookie of the Year discussions.’
But while Whitlock blamed Staley for orchestrating Clark’s Olympic snub in one breath, he the dismissed her as ‘largely powerless and ineffectual’ in his next. The real problem facing Clark, Whitlock explained, is her fans.
‘Clark’s real obstacles are her lovers — the mob of fans triggered by dwarfs, the people who want to turn their idol into a victim,’ he said. ‘A victimhood mentality could derail Caitlin Clark’s historic season. It could prevent Clark from reaching her full potential this year. Clark had a chance to put together the greatest rookie season in the history of professional sports.’
Whitlock went on to rattle off a few famed rookie campaigns, like Jackie Robinson’s in 1947 and Mike Tyson’s first year as a pro in 1985.
Of course, Robinson’s Brooklyn Dodgers fell in the 1947 World Series to the rival New York Yankees, while Tyson’s move to the professional ranks began 15 straight knockout wins against what Whitlock described as ‘tomato cans.’
Clark’s Fever are now 8-2 in their last 10, which has some thinking Indiana could be in line for a stunning title run in 2024.
‘They’re the hottest team in the league since the Olympic break,’ he said before cautioning her fans.
As Whitlock sees it, Clark’s fans are in danger of enabling the rookie sensation’s worst habits, such as an inconsistent defensive effort and willingness to take low-percentage 3-pointers early in a possession.
‘A victim mentality would prevent her from making the necessary improvements,’ Whitlock said. ‘Her fans could give her that mentality if they continue to cry about things that don’t really matter, and shield Clark from objective criticism.
‘Caitlin Clark is lazy on defense,’ he continued. ‘She spends way too much time whining to the referees. She loses focus with her ball handling and passing, and lapses into chucking the ball up from deep early in the shot clock.
‘Clark’s shortcomings need to be publicly discussed. It will force her to address this, but it’s difficult to do in the current environment. Her supporters interpret any criticism as unfair bigotry or jealousy. They’ve adopted the victim’s mentality for Caitlin Clark.’
And it’s that victim’s mentality that Whitlock associates with Clark’s rivals.
‘You wanna know why the Seven Dwarfs are whining and crying about Caitlin Clark?’ he asked himself. ‘Because they have a victim’s mentality. Because they’ve been surrounded by people making any and every excuse for any of their shortcomings.
‘Don’t do it to Caitlin Clark,’ he concluded. ‘She’s not weak. She’s prepared and strong.’
Clark’s fans have faced other criticisms in recent weeks, like an SBNation article calling out online abuse directed at DeShields.
After DeShields committed a hard foul on Clark last week, she faced a wave of online abuse focusing on the spinal tumor that nearly left her paralyzed.
‘That tumor should of (sic) took you out,’ read one comment directed at DeShields, who had sugery to remove the tumor in 2020.
‘Ms. Tumor are you alright?’ asked another Clark fan.
