It seems like Caitlin Clark and the WNBA just can’t catch a break. Just when the dust was settling around the Indiana Fever rookie’s questionable snub from the Olympics squad, her nemesis Angel Reese reignited their rivalry by hitting Clark on the head – a Flagrant One. Fans, pundits, and ex-athletes including former NFL star Matt Leinart were enraged by Reese’s actions and demanded her suspension.
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The nasty unnecessary foul by Reese occurred in the dying moments of the match between Indiana Fever and Chicago Sky. Reese smacked Caitlin’s back of the head in a bid to stop the rookie from driving towards the basket. The smack sent Caitlin tumbling down making it yet another case of the WNBA players going hard on the rookie.
Former Heisman Winner and NFL veteran Matt Leinart was appalled by the Chicago Sky Forward’s action and took to “X” demanding the WNBA to suspend the player. “Angel Reese should be suspended. Period. Not good for the game,” tweeted Leinart on “X”.
Angel Reese should be suspended. Period. Not good for the game.
— Matt Leinart (@MattLeinartQB) June 16, 2024
Fans however had a different view to the foul. They didn’t agree with the former NFL QB but instead argued that it was too soft a foul to be reacting to this. Fans instead trolled the former Bills for being so soft despite being an NFL player himself.
You played in the NFL and you are now this soft.
This was a hard foul, upgraded to a flagrant.
Refs got it right, but that was a basketball play and this professional women’s basketball which isn’t physical game.
— just1n (@just1nvest) June 16, 2024
By rule that was a flagrant 1, but it was a basketball play. Reese went for where she thought the ball would be. She simply didn’t anticipate the underhand shot.
— Jack Buckingham (@Jbuck9797) June 16, 2024
Shut up. You couldn’t name 10 WNBA players without Google. That play was as random as any foul we see.
Comments like this are what keep the Corn People stirred up.
— Etoya R. White (@EtoyaWhite) June 16, 2024
No wonder you were a bust too damn soft
— FlyEaglesFly (@GoBirds365) June 16, 2024
Why should someone be suspended for a clear cut basketball play?
You’re acting hysterical like she came across the middle like a free safety and laid Caitlin Clark out.
Angel Reese went for the block of the ball and missed. This happens on basketball courts all the time.
She…
— Jean-Philippe (@mrjeanphilippe) June 16, 2024
One of the common accusations thrown at Leinart for his take was of racial bias. Netizens argued that Leinart is calling for a harsh step simply due to the ethnicity and color of the players involved. NFL veteran RGIII thankfully came to Leinart’s defense as he urged the netizens to stop making it a race war.
RGIII Calls For Sense, Says It “Is Not Fair” To Involve Caitlin Clark In A Race War
When the discourse around racial bias was heating up, former Ravens QB Robert Griffin III soon entered the ring calling for a truce. Griffin pleaded with his followers to move away from the racial bias lens as a serious allegation like this is unfair and disrespectful to both players and the game.
“Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese are being used in a race war that is not fair to either athlete or the game of basketball,” said Griffin on “X”.
Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese are being used in a race war that is not fair to either athlete or the game of basketball.
— Robert Griffin III (@RGIII) June 17, 2024
It’s heartening to see athletes like RGIII using their platform to preach sense. The foul was adjudged Flagrant One by the officials and a healthy discourse should have been around the logic behind the decision.
