Christine Brennan Reacts To WNBA Owner Criticizing Caitlin Clark's TIME Cover
12/14/2024 01:00 PM
Caitlin Clark was named the TIME Athlete of the Year for 2024 after a landmark season personally and for the WNBA. The rookie became the face of the league in her first season, setting the stage for an increase in viewership, fan interest and the addition of new media deals.
Clark's success has largely been seen as a rising tide for the entire league, but one WNBA owner took issue with how she was the only player featured in the TIME profile.
"We have so much talent out there that has been unrecognized, and I don't think we can just pin it on one player," Washington Mystics owner Sheila Johnson said in an interview with CNN.
"Why couldn't they have put the whole WNBA on the cover and said, 'The WNBA is the League of the Year,' because of all the talent that we have," Johnson added.
Following Johnson's comments, USA TODAY columnist Christine Brennan reacted by defending the choice for Clark to represent the league on the cover.
Members of the media are speaking up for Caitlin Clark after Sheila Johnson's comments. It would be great to see WNBA leadership follow suit. https://t.co/lSVUrLVkkPpic.twitter.com/bjM9EPYBT3
— ericaf455 (@ericaf455) December 14, 2024
After explaining that she has a great deal of respect for Johnson and what she's been able to accomplish, Brennan noted that she "[doesn't] know why she said what she said."
"It is of course the athlete of the year, and it's not the league of the year or team of the year. Caitlin Clark deserves that," Brennan said on CNN.
"There's no doubt that Caitlin Clark, the impact that she had on the league, was extraordinary.
The TV ratings, the attendance, sellouts - even Sheila Johnson's own team, the Washington Mystics, moved their two Indiana Fever games from a 4,200-seat arena to a 20,000-seat arena and in September had the biggest crowd in WNBA history - because of Caitlin Clark."
Brennan then added that she understands what Johnson's overall point is - there are several great players in the league who deserve a spotlight - but that Clark also realizes this and addresses it in the TIME profile.
"Caitlin has been nothing but great on this issue of the Black women who have made the WNBA what it is," Brennan said.
"I want to say I've earned every single thing, but as a white person, there is privilege," Clark said in TIME.
"A lot of those players in the league that have been really good have been Black players. This league has kind of been built on them. The more we can appreciate that, highlight that, talk about that, and then continue to have brands and companies invest in those players that have made this league incredible, I think it's very important. I have to continue to try to change that. The more we can elevate Black women, that's going to be a beautiful thing."
We'll see if Clark's popularity results in more controversy after an excellent but polarizing debut season in the WNBA.
Related: U.S. Olympian Gabby Thomas Has Message For People 'Boycotting' Caitlin Clark
