Radio host James Golden commented on the “ugly look” for the WNBA as Indiana Fever rookie Caitlin Clark continues to get attacked both on and off the court.
The latest dust-up centered around a play during the Indiana Fever’s 91-83 win over Chicago when Chicago Sky rookie Angel Reese came up from behind and her arm came down on Clark’s face, knocking her to the ground as she was driving to the basket. Reese was called for a flagrant-1 violation, and she characterized the incident as “a basketball play.”
Clark told reporters after the game “It’s just part of basketball.”
“It is what it is, you know, she’s trying to make a play on the ball and get the block. It happens,” she added as the moment spiraled into another hot debate.
Golden, aka Bo Snerdley, weighed in on the “hubbub” during an appearance on NewsNation’s “Morning in America.”
Host Nick Smith noted the “media frenzy” that followed the play with some “demonizing” Reese while others defended her, wondering if the media “was almost hoping for a moment like this.”
“What role do you think the media had in amplifying this quote, unquote rivalry between the two women,” Smith asked Golden.
The WABC radio host, author, and longtime producer for the legendary Rush Limbaugh pointed to the many columns that focused on “pitting this as a black-white situation” in the Women’s National Basketball Association, essentially pitting the black females against Clark “because she’s white and she’s straight – that’s also been thrown in there.”
“It’s kind of an ugly look in the NBA where this keeps repeatedly happening with Caitlin,” Golden remarked. “Now, is it happening with other players? I don’t know because we don’t see that. But if there is some singling out of Caitlin Clark…it would look like petty jealousy at best. At worst, it could be because of something else.”
He contended “that would be pretty tacky” for the WNBA to let it continue, while Smith noted how Clark has “kept it classy/”
Golden agreed, calling Clark a “class act” for her behavior while contending the current issue is not to be compared with what Major League Baseball legend Jackie Robinson faced.
“But this is a shade of it…it could be a shade of it, with resentment toward that player for reasons totally outside that player’s control,” he said, reiterating that Clark is a “class act” and “that’s what Jackie Robinson was when he went through his hardships.”
“She’s letting her excellence do the talking for her,” Golden said, adding, “What we are seeing is competition. These women want to win.”