Caitlin Clark has responded to her name being used as a weapon to spread racism and misogyny after being pressured to address the issue.
The WNBA rookie appeared to ignore suggestions that her name was being used in the ongoing culture war surrounding the league when asked Thursday.
Connecticut Sun star DiJonai Carrington appeared to take issue with Clark’s response and took to social media to question how players, apparently the former Iowa star, can’t worry about being turned into weapons of hate.
However, Clark took a firmer stance when pressed directly on the issue later Thursday night, ahead of the Indiana Fever’s game against the Atlanta Dream.
“It’s disappointing,” he admitted. ‘Everyone in our world deserves the same respect. The women in our league deserve the same respect.
Caitlin Clark has responded to the use of her name as a weapon to spread racism and misogyny.
‘People shouldn’t use my name for those agendas. It’s disappointing. Is not acceptable.
‘This league is the league that I grew up admiring and wanted to be a part of. Some of the women in this league were my biggest idols and role models growing up and helped me want to achieve this moment here where I can play every night.
When previously asked by reporters about the way people use his name in public discourse, Clark took a fairly neutral stance, insisting that he was just playing his sport.
“It’s not something I can control, so I don’t spend too much time thinking about things like that,” he said.
‘Basketball is my job. Everything that is outside, I can’t control, so I’m not going to waste time thinking about it. “People can talk about whatever they want to talk about… I’m just there to play basketball.”
However, Carrington apparently perceived their response as dismissive and took to social media to insist that players should report the problems they see.
DiJonnai Carrington (R) subtweeted Clark (L) for her response to a question about the use of her name in an ongoing “culture war” surrounding the WNBA in recent weeks.
‘Dog. “How can we not be bothered that his name is used to justify racism, intolerance, misogyny, xenophobia, homophobia and the intersectionalities of all of them is crazy,” Carrington tweeted.
‘We all see the shit. We all have a platform. We all have a voice and everyone has weight. Silence is a luxury.
Clark has complained that players have escaped punishment for being too physical when facing her in the league, a big topic of debate after Chennedy Carter subjected her to a body check in a recent game against the Chicago Sky.
Clark, 22, was also controversially passed over by the United States women’s basketball team for the Paris Olympics next month.
Clark had taken a neutral stance, insisting that he was just playing his sport when asked earlier.
Clark took a firmer stance when pressed directly on the issue before the Dream game.
The discourse has reached toxic levels with controversial figures like Clay Travis and Jason Whitlock claiming that Clark is being attacked for being a white, straight gamer.
Meanwhile, Andscape writer David Dennis Jr. said in Around the Horn, ‘fringe people who exist and who are in real life, not just Internet trolls; politicians, pundits and the like – (are) using Caitlin Clark as an avatar to lash out at people they despise: primarily the makeup of the WNBA, black women and others.’
During the Sun’s game against the Indiana Fever earlier this week, Carrington appeared to mock Clark by imitating a failure when a foul was called on the rookie.
Carrington is one of the Sun’s best players, who have the best record in the WNBA at 11-1.