Angel Reese and Caitlin Clark will unite for a common goal on Saturday night as the WNBA All-Star team tries to take down the United States’ Olympic team. They are not rivals for just one night and one night only.
They are teammates!
Although the two superstar rookies absolutely hate each other as players on the court, they don’t have any legitimate beef as people. Sue Bird believes that is largely true for most of the league.
Clark’s first few weeks in the WNBA were rough. Not only was she struggling to get an individual rhythm, other players — mostly veterans — went out of their way to give her a hard time and spoil her success after 365 days of nonstop hype. The bullying reached the point that fans started to call for the Indiana Fever to sign an enforcer, which Chennedy Carter thought was whack.
Bird was the No. 1 overall pick in 2002 and played two decades with the Seattle Storm. She knows what it is like to be a highly-touted rookie and has seen the league evolve.
In her opinion, the narrative about Clark’s treatment was overblown.
Bird, who touted her desire to “kill rookies” long before Clark’s arrival, has the utmost respect for the biggest star in league history and what she is doing for the game. However, respect does not change the fact that veterans want to teach rookies a lesson. She believes that “competitive talk” was perceived as “hating on somebody,” when it was “just competition” for the “majority of WNBA players.”
Regardless of whether Bird’s view on the Caitlin Clark conversation is on the money or not, the Indiana Fever guard packed on additional muscle to deal with the physicality and WNBA veterans are starting to look out for her after the initial blowback.
This weekend serves as a great example of how people of differing opinions toward the league can get along. Reese is excited to be on Clark’s side for the night and hopes that people will behave.
“I’m looking forward to it. Everybody can wear their ‘Get Along’ shirts together for one day, at least.” — Angel Reese
The dynamic rookie duo was cooking during practice on Friday!
WNBA All-Star coach Cheryl Miller accidentally revealed that her team wants to “beat the brakes off” of the Olympic team. Reese and Clark are going to have to work together to make that happen.
Rivals no more!