Sheryl Swoopes is speechless about Caitlin Clark’s white privilege issue

WNBA legend Sheryl Swoopes had an interesting reaction to Caitlin Clark’s Time Athlete of the Year interview, in which the Fever star said she was aware of her white privilege and wanted to use her platform to promote Black players.

During Tuesday’s edition of the “Gil’s Arena” podcast, Swoopes was speechless and shrugged when co-host Josiah Johnson mentioned that Clark said the league was largely built on the shoulders of black players – like Swoopes, one of the original players who joined the founding of the WNBA in 1996.

“Your thoughts on Caitlin Clark saying she wants to use her platform to highlight Black women in the WNBA, who have obviously been instrumental in making this league what it is?” Johnson asked.

Swoopes, who has been in the middle of, and sometimes at the origin of, many of Clark’s controversies, nodded during an awkward silence.

Someone not caught on camera could be heard laughing before Johnson said “OK.”

Swoopes started talking again as they moved on to another topic.

She said she wasn’t surprised that Clark – the No. 1 pick in this year’s WNBA draft, who was named to the All-Star team and won the Rookie of the Year award – was named current athlete of the year became.

“I don’t think I’m surprised. “I’m excited to see who the other candidates were, but the fact that this is the first WNBA player to ever be named Time Magazine’s Athlete of the Year is very special,” Swoopes said.

“And my question is: Are the criteria based on their performance on the pitch? Yes, she is having a great year. Or was it more about the impact she had on the game this season? … I think it’s great – not just for them – I think it’s great for the league. Everyone was talking about the recognition she brought to the W this season, and for her to be named Time Magazine’s Female Athlete of the Year I think is really great for the league.”

A three-time MVP, Swoopes won four straight championships as a member of the Houston Comets from 1997 to 2000. She also won three Olympic gold medals with USA Basketball.

Clark said in her interview to Time: “I want to say I deserve everything, but as a white person there is privilege. A lot of the players in the league who were really good were black players. This league is kind of built on them.

“The more we value that, highlight it, talk about it and then continue to have brands and companies invest in the players that have made this league so incredible, I think the more important it is. “I have to keep trying to change that. The more we can empower black women, the more beautiful it will be.”

Clark, 22, doubled down on her comments while on stage at a Time dinner in New York City at Current in Chelsea Piers on Wednesday.

The WNBA star explained that she’s good at “blocking things out” when asked about Megyn Kelly’s criticism of her comments about white privilege.

Earlier this year, Swoopes faced backlash for previous comments she made about Clark when, on a separate episode of the “Gil’s Arena” podcast, she questioned the legitimacy of Clark’s all-time scoring record at Iowa, falsely claiming that she had another fifth year to break this record.

Swoopes previously denied that she had anything against Clark and praised her play.

The WNBA legend also said Clark fans behaved badly toward her.