sphere wrote:
I don’t know if I was expecting this kind of reception in the league but I can’t say I’m surprised by it. Granted it’s only been a few incidents and maybe not much different from what happens in the NBA, but damn. I sense a lot of resentment in these words and actions.
https://x.com/...MKbkOzpNU_o_bXlnvUlQOn the one hand, I think anyone can understand some level of resentment from established league players when a new player was getting all kinds of attention and love from the press even before she played a second of pro ball. It's predictable human nature.
On the other hand, it really seems shortsighted and counterproductive. Like it or not, the WNBA is benefitting from the interest in Clark, and tangibly so even in the first few weeks of her career. I don't know what Clark is like on the court, but she doesn't seem to be deliberately feeding any of the media talk, so it's not like she's personally providing bulletin board material.
It's kind of like when a band with a strong cult following finally makes it big, and all the original cult fans are pissy about the new audience. They'd rather that their favorite band not have success, so they can maintain a kind of outsider status rather than share the band with a bigger group of people. It's almost like some of these WNBA players would rather have lower attendance and viewership and be able to claim that they're disrespected and under appreciated, rather than see those numbers improve because of new interest generated around Clark. Also seems like there's some amount of race based resentment from black players who think Clark is only getting attention because she's white. I can't tell if that's real, or just part of a narrative I've been seeing in some media reports.
Hard to tell from just watching highlights and SportsCenter and reading the occasional article. The game itself is still pretty unappealing to watch (obviously subjectively speaking).
Slowguy
(insert pithy phrase here...)
