Exhale! The past three weeks, culminating with the Women’s and Men’s NCAA Basketball Championship Games, on Sunday afternoon, and Monday evening, respectively, were a whirlwind of mostly exciting, frequently surprising outcomes, that at the end of the day wound up with the chalkiest of conclusions. The top two number one seeds faced each other in the Finals of both the Men’s and Women’s Tournaments, with the overall number seed prevailing by double digits in their respective Tournament. South Carolina beat Iowa 87-75, and Connecticut, which won all six of its Tournament Games by double digits, eclipsed (see what I did there…the Solar Eclipse was earlier Monday…Purdue 75-60.
Throughout the course of the Tournament, I heard and saw much more chatter and coverage of the Women’s Tournament than in previous years. Much if not most the feedback emanating about the Women’s Tournament dealt, directly or indirectly, with Caitlin Clark.
For a segment of the viewing public, this was problematic. For many, it took on an almost sinister nature. It seemed that quite a few people, a lot, but not all of them, genuine sports fans, believed there was a media conspiracy to hype Ms. Clark, to the detriment of Black women athletes. And to be clear, while this was principally a Black thing, it was (and still is, I’m sure), not relegated to women. Part of this may be due to the fact that for years, sports were deemed to be the sole province of men. First of all, if that were ever the case, it is not that way today. In fact, there have been female athletes for eons, so, while the breakdown may be more balanced today, men have never ‘owned’ sports.
In the minds of a lot of Black folks, Basketball belongs to “us;” it’s ‘our’ game. It’s not, of course. Even though we account for a majority of player in the NBA, and on a good many college basketball teams, the game has always been comprised of players of other persuasions. For heaven’s sake, the NBA logo captures the likeness of Jerry West (that may change one day), along with Magic Johnson, Larry Bird was one of the players instrumental in saving the NBA from a spiraling decline in the 70’s and early 80’s. When Magic Johnson won the MVP of the 1980 NBA Finals, the League was so unpopular that the NBA Finals were not shown on live television. The games were shown as tape-delayed telecasts. A year earlier, Johnson and his Michigan State team has met, ad defeated Larry Bird and his up to that point undefeated Indiana State team in the 1979 NCAA Title Game. Afterward, Johnson was drafted by the Lakers, and Bird was drafted by the Celtics. The rest is history.
I say all that to say, there really is no mystery, or conspiracy tied to why Caitlin Clark gets the treatment from the media. There is little more mystery tied to why even some White (Black one too, I’m sure) WNBA are taking exception to her. Caitlin has an element of style and flair that draws attention to herself. That can easily be off-putting to players and fans alike. More often than not, however, she backs it up…on the court, where it matters most.
As a sports fan, and avid observer of sports, especially basketball, what I see, when I watch CC, is the player whom the WNBA, and its television partners envision as the next Box Office mega-star. Is it possible they could be wrong? Of course it is. The NBA, which has considerably more experience and cachet than the W, they’ve had several Number 1 Draft Picks who were flat-out busts, including Pervis Ellison, Kwame Brown, Greg Oden, and Anthony Bennett. So, yes, it could happen. But I don’t expect it to.
Clark is projected to be the WNBA’s Number 1 Draft Pick. If she can avoid injury, she’s likely to live up to the hype. She’s known for her prolific shooting. This year, according to the NCAA, more than 60 of her 3-point shots made were taken from beyond 26 feet. Just to be clear, the NBA 3-point Line is 23.75 feet, at it’s farthest. She pulls up from distance with impunity and made 38.5. of her 3-point attempts this year as a senior. But she’s not just a gunner. She has stout handles and passes willingly. She holds the NCAA D-1 Tournament all-time women’s records for points, assists, and 3-pointers.
The fascination with Caitlin, the NCAA’s, the media, and the fans (those who like her, and those who don’t), is tied to the fact that she shows up. Her Iowa team lost in the Title Game to a dominant, undefeated Dawn Staley coached South Carolina team. After giving up 18 first quarter points to Clark, South Carolina made adjustments, and she scored only 12 points the rest of the game. Still, that’s 30 for the game. Two of her most notable adversaries, Angel Reese, a player from LSU, and Coach Staley, complimented her for helping lift the profile of Women’s basketball. The Title game on Sunday was viewed by an average 18.9 million people, and by as many as 24 million, making it the most watched college basketball game. Ever.
At the end of the day, that translates to green, and that is the color that motivates the NCAA, its media partners, and product sponsors. “Don’t Get It Twisted: It’s Just Business!”
I’m done; holla back!
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