While most fans praise Caitlin Clark’s popularity and prowess, she is now being criticized for not participating in the WNBA three-point contest.
With the WNBA All-Star weekend about to begin in Phoenix, the Indiana Fever rookie, known for her reach, surprisingly won’t be participating in Friday night’s shootout.
On Thursday’s Around the Horn, host Tony Reali asked the panel how the WNBA should feel about Clark’s refusal to participate, prompting a frustrated response from David Dennis Jr.
“I don’t like it when stars don’t participate in these competitions,” Dennis said before citing MLB’s Home Run Derby and the NBA’s Slam Dunk Contest.
“I didn’t like not seeing Aaron Judge and Ohtani; I didn’t like seeing the LeBrons and the Zions (not) in the dunk contest,” he said.
Caitlin Clark faces criticism for refusing to participate in WNBA three-point contest
“But especially now. For Caitlin Clark, this is a missed opportunity, both for her and for all those people who spent all that time talking about, ‘How could Team USA not have her on the team?’ Because, ‘How can you grow the game without Caitlin Clark?’ This is another opportunity. What are they going to say now? Because Caitlin Clark has given up an opportunity that will grow the game.”
Dennis went on to reference Sabrina Ionescu’s record-breaking performance in last year’s three-point contest. The win ultimately led to her facing Steph Curry in a special competition at the NBA All-Star weekend in February.
“We saw when (Sabrina) Ionescu broke the competition record for three-pointers,” Dennis said. “She grew the game and became a popular moment. That’s why Caitlin Clark has decided not to participate. Don’t tell me she’s tired. Because they wanted her on the U.S. team.
Clark led all players in voting for the WNBA All-Star team, but will not participate in the shootout.
Last year’s winner, Sabrina Ionescu, will also skip Friday night’s three-point contest.
Ionescu has been selected to play for Team USA at the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris.
“Don’t tell me he doesn’t want the attention. If he was on Team USA, he’d get a lot of attention. There’s no excuse for him not to go out and shoot some threes to improve the game that everyone says desperately needs to grow.”
Like Dennis, Sarah Spain also expressed her disappointment at Clark’s absence from the event’s list of participants. She then noted that Ionescu will also be absent from this year’s contest.
“Neither Caitlin Clark nor Sabrina Ionescu will be participating in the 3-point race on Friday night in Phoenix,” Spain wrote on X. “I’m sure they have their reasons, but this is a HUGE disappointment. A missed opportunity.”
Clark is averaging 17.1 points on 40.5 percent field goal shooting and 32.7 percent three-point shooting.
Ionescu has a valid reason for not defending her crown, as she has been called up to compete for the United States at the Olympics. However, Clark, whose exclusion from the team angered fans, may have some clarification to make.
To cap off this weekend’s festivities, Clark and the WNBA All-Stars will take on Ionescu and Team USA.
Clark led all players in All-Star voting despite her rookie status, while averaging 17.1 points, 5.8 rebounds and 8.2 assists per game, shooting 40.5 percent from the field and 32.7 percent from three.