NFL legend Shannon Sharpe was recently in conversation with GQ Sports, where he was asked the inevitable question about Caitlin Clark‘s preferential treatment from a media perspective. Since Unc is a respected member of the media, he was asked about the lack of attention given to other star players of the WNBA, like A’ja Wilson, who are objectively better than Clark and are the best in the world in their craft.
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Sharpe had a blunt response, “the fans determine what we talk about.” According to the ESPN analyst, the media merely caters to the demands of fans, who are more interested in learning about Caitlin Clark’s exploits than any other WNBA player, no matter how good they are.
The discussion stemmed from the fact that First Take spent a lot of time talking about Clark not being included in the Team USA Olympics Team despite the superior qualifications of the players who were selected. Sharpe explained that a discussion around Clark’s snub was more relevant at the time and that is why they discussed it on the show.
Sharpe believes that CC is a polarizing figure with immense marketability potential, and everyone is benefitting from her rise in women’s basketball. To prove his point he brought up A’ja Wilson and her Las Vegas Aces.
Sharpe told GQ, “They’ve [Aces] won back-to-back, and their ticket prices when Caitlin Clark came were triple what they were when they won the WNBA Finals. She is the most popular female basketball player in the world right now. Nobody has come into the WNBA with more fanfare.”
Unc followed it up by making his stance clear on the discussion. He said that Wilson is, without question, the best player in the league. However, Clark is just more marketable.
He added, “I’m not saying she’s gonna be A’ja Wilson, I’m not saying she’s gonna be Diana Taurasi, Sheryl Swoopes, or Breanna Stewart. We know she probably won’t be anything like that.”
Despite that, Clark is the one who has the women’s basketball world in a chokehold. Sharpe said, for that reason, she deserves to be talked about in the media.
Shannon Sharpe claims Caitlin Clark should’ve been on the team instead of Diana Taurasi
When told by the interviewer that Clark wasn’t deserving of a spot on the Olympic roster just because she ranks high up in popularity, Sharpe had an interesting take on it. He said, “But her numbers are better than Diana Taurasi’s across the board, so why is DT there—a legacy pick? And I love DT, but her numbers aren’t better than Caitlin Clark.”
Unc believes that Team USA can win gold with or without CC. But taking her to Paris would’ve been an unprecedented global advertisement for the WNBA..
He said, “I was just thinking about getting marketing dollars so that all of a sudden, that $76,000 is a minimum and rookies are coming in making $100,000. Then, hopefully, that gets to $125,000, then $200,000. Then, the top women’s players can make a million dollars instead of $245,000.”
Sharpe said that Clark’s meteoric rise is beneficial for everyone involved with the sport. So, instead of frowning upon her popularity, if everyone acknowledged and accepted her, they’ll make a lot more money than they have been making for decades.
