On April 2, 2023, Angel Reese and her LSU Tigers took down Caitlin Clark and her Iowa Hawkeyes to win the NCAA Championship. It was a well-fought battle, but one moment changed how it would be viewed in history.
Advertisement
After the win, Angel taunted Caitlin by hitting her ‘you can’t see me celebration’, which blew up the internet and set the narrative for a budding rivalry. It has now carried forward well into their WNBA careers, and had a flare-up during the 2024 March Madness.
The two young stars have become the faces of their franchises, and any matchup between their two teams always draws eyeballs. The WNBA knows it, and that’s why they made Indiana Fever vs Chicago Sky the opening night matchup for both teams.
In the third quarter, Reese beat Natasha Howard for a rebound and had an open layup. Clark committed a hard foul to prevent Reese from having an open bucket and was called for a flagrant 1 foul.
It should not be as big a story as it is. But competitiveness boils over to anger easily. Both Clark and Reese tried to poopoo the foul, calling it a basketball play. But it has prompted multiple think pieces from all corners of the basketball world.
Matt Barnes, who played 14 seasons in the NBA, talked with Stephen Jackson about the Clark-Resse rivalry and the foul itself on his All the Smoke podcast.
“Caitlin Clark gave her a hard take foul, I definitely didn’t think it was bad. I think Angel dramatized it a little bit and flailed,” said Barnes.
“I think what has grown this game is the storyline and the rivalry that started back in college,” he added.
Barnes has a point. The WNBA experienced all-time peaks in viewership last year, especially on Sky vs Fever games. Some have likened Clark and Reese to Magic Johnson and Larry Bird.
“When I saw this s***, I said this is what we need,” added Vernon Maxwell, “The only thing I didn’t like about that was the racism of it. I just don’t think this s*** should be a part of the girls’ game.”
Unfortunately, some fans took it too far, leading the league to open an investigation into the use of racial slurs by them. Fever fans allegedly were also making monkey noises when Reese was at the free-throw line, which is what Maxwell was referring to.
Drama drives viewership, and the WNBA certainly has its flagship story in that regard. The growth of the league depends on these two franchise stars taking it forward. And the Fever-Sky rivalry, for sure, will be one to watch for years to come.
