Caitlin ClarkLisa Bluder, a former college coach, now knows that everyone around her WNBA – include Washington Mystics Co-owner Sheila Johnson — “Embraces” how Clark’s stardom has revitalized women’s basketball.
Following his 2024 WNBA Rookie of the Year season indiana feverClark was named Time magazine’s Athlete of the Year, and Johnson, the billionaire founder of the BET Network, said he disagreed.
to Interview with CNN Sports earlier this weekJohnson said “the structure of how the media plays the race” was a factor in Clark receiving the honor, and argued that Time instead “should have put the entire WNBA on that cover and said the WNBA is the league of the year.” “
speaking USA TODAY Takes Sports SeriouslyBluder, who retired in May after coaching 24 seasons with the Iowa Hawkeyes, where Clark played from 2020 to 2024, disagreed and argued Clark’s impact on women’s sports was historic.
“It’s ridiculous to me that someone would try to take something so good away from your sport right now,” Bluder said. “(Clark) is someone who really helped athletics, helped women’s sports in a way that maybe no one has helped women’s sports since Billie Jean King.”
Mystics owner Johnson: Constant focus on Clark ‘brings up difficult emotions’
Johnson’s point is nuanced, and in the same interview, the Mystics co-owner credited Clark with using the Time interview to: Call for more attention to black players in WNBA.
“It took the WNBA almost 28 years to get to where it is now,” Johnson explained. “It’s not just Kaitlyn Clark, it’s (Angel) Reese. We have so much under-recognized talent that I don’t think (the rise of the league) can be pinned on one player…
“It’s really unfortunate because we see so many athletes of color with the same talent, but they don’t get the recognition they deserve, and I think it’s time for that to happen.”
Bluder’s position seems to be that a rising tide will lift all boats and that the entire WNBA will benefit from Clark’s reputation.
“Let’s jump on the bandwagon and help her out and make her life a little easier,” Bluder said. “Sometimes we would say to the team, ‘Listen to Caitlin’s light when it shines on her and when it shines on all of us.’ And I think everyone else needs to be more receptive to that, too.”
Clark defends the honor of time and acknowledges white privilege.
As is the case with any athlete who rockets to superstardom, anything Clark says about larger issues can spark a reaction. Some people were unhappy with how often the 22-year-old used his elevated platform to highlight the issues discussed by Johnson. In an interview with Time magazine, Clark paid tribute to the WNBA’s black players while also claiming she has earned the praise she is receiving.
“I’ve got everything, but I would say I have privileges as a white man. A lot of the really good players in the league have been black players. This league is kind. It’s built on that,” Clark said.
“I think it’s very important that we appreciate that more, highlight it, talk about it, and make sure that brands and companies continue to invest in the players that make this league great. … I think it’s really important that we get more black women. “We can improve it, and that would be a really beautiful thing.”
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY. Lisa Bluder dismisses criticism of Caitlin Clark’s Time magazine cover.
