Rapper Ice Cube recently offered $5 million to Iowa Hawkeyes star Caitlin Clark to play in his upcoming Big3 League, something that has sparked a massive debate online. The college basketball sensation is expected to be the first overall pick in the 2024 WNBA draft and will have to miss some part of her debut season if she accepts the unprecedented offer.
Advertisement
While many have suggested Clark should turn down the offer, former NBA first-round pick Justin Jackson is squarely in the other camp. In the latest episode of the Tidal League Podcast, he implored the Hawkeyes superstar to take the money. His opinion did not change when co-host and former Dallas Mavericks star Theo Pinson pointed out that the Big3 league’s schedule coincided with the WNBA regular season.
After hearing Jackson’s opinion, Pinson also chimed in, saying,
“I’m gonna be honest with you. It would be hard, but I’d probably take the money too. But also, it just would be like fun for her.”
Jackson then added that it’s a lose-lose situation for Clark. He explained that the Hawkeyes star will be scrutinized meticulously if she participates in the Big3 league. She will face incessant trolling if she struggles offensively and will likely also be subjected to sexist taunts on social media. However, $5 million is a massive amount to turn down for anyone in the world.
Jackson’s explanation is spot on. Ice Cube’s lucrative offer can be deemed too good to turn down, but Clark would be turning her back on being with her WNBA team from the get-go, which would likely be frowned upon. Additionally, if she struggles to replicate her Hawkeyes form in the Big3 League against mostly retired NBA players, that could also diminish her stock. In every sense, this is a tough situation for Clark.
Lexie Brown calls out Ice Cube for masking the real motive behind the Big3 league offer to Caitlin Clark
After TMZ leaked the Big3 League’s $5 million offer to Caitlin Clark, rapper Ice Cube, the league’s co-founder, attempted to clear the air on X, formerly Twitter, citing the apparent reasons behind their proposal. One of them was his desire to pave the way for WNBA players to participate in the Big3 league so they wouldn’t have to go overseas during the offseason to make ends meet.
It’s a noble thought, especially considering WNBA star Brittney Griner‘s nightmare Russian ordeal. However, Los Angeles Sparks guard Lexie Brown isn’t buying Ice Cube’s reason. On a recent episode of the Gil’s Arena podcast, she said,
“You offer the contract to a player who is not yet in the WNBA? Big3 does not happen during overseas seasons, so, that doesn’t make sense… I think he’s trying to make a business decision, which he is a businessman and that makes sense. But to mask it in this, I want to uplift and support WNBA players and women athletes is kind of a cop-out I think. And I don’t think it really makes any sense.”
Ice Cube confirmed Brown’s suspicion on the All The Smoke podcast. When asked about his league’s offer to Clark, the rapper said,
“With us it’s kind of a NIL situation, our sponsors are clamoring, they would love for her to join the league, and if she joined the league, they would support the league even more.”
Clark is a hot commodity, as evidenced by the soaring ticket prices for the Hawkeyes’ games and the record-breaking viewership for her team’s games during the ongoing NCAA Tournament. It’s primarily a business decision from Ice Cube to make Clark the unprecedented offer to play in his league in the upcoming season.
