It was just recently that LeBron James called out Caitlin Clark’s WNBA peers for their “pettiness”. The former Iowa phenom has been the recipient of much hate since her fame saw a rapid incline. It wasn’t just from fans, but legends of the sport were unhappy with the popularity and claims that followed Clark’s rise to stardom. Diana Taurasi was very clear about the expectations that were placed on the rising superstar. The 3x WNBA champion said that “reality was coming” for Clark.

However, none of this is what’s getting all the attention now. The Lakers superstar’s statement about the unreal expectations placed on the Indiana Fever rookie was something he understood. “I’ve been in that seat before. I’ve walked that road before,” James said in an episode of Mind the Game podcast. Bron is, of course, referring to the ‘Chosen One’ and ‘generational talent’ labels.

Drafted straight out of high school, he came into the NBA with responsibilities that were too heavy for an 18-year-old to carry on his own. But these are things we know like the back of our hand. So what was different? Why do many feel that James’ comparison doesn’t really make sense? Skip Bayless seems to have the answer.

Paul Pierce and former NFL wide receiver Keyshawn Johnson joined in his latest episode of Undisputed as they discussed Bronny James, Caitlin Clark, and LeBron James. While both of the guests had their own versions, James’ long-time nemesis proceeded to hit him with some hard truths. “I’m not sure he’s traveled the road she’s [Clark] on right now because … the NBA was up and running at a very high level when LeBron entered so he didn’t need to save the NBA,” Skip said.

The veteran podcaster admitted that the 4x champion entered the league as the Chosen One. Unfortunately, according to Bayless, that’s where the similarity ends. In Bron’s case, he had a slew of legends who had already put the NBA on the map, so to speak. There was Magic, Bird, MJ, Shaq, and Kobe. So what set James apart was he came into the league with sky-high expectations and lived up to them. As Skip pointed out, the ‘Akron Hammer’ scored 25 on his opening night against Sacramento and never looked back!

However, that wasn’t the case with Caitlin Clark.

Skip Bayless points out what exactly made Caitlin Clark different from LeBron James

“Nobody’s been watching you until she stepped on the floor.” This was the crux of the matter. The WNBA has been around for 28 years, give or take. Well, it was founded in 1996 but officially started playing the next year. Since then, we have had brilliant women athletes grinding and staying locked in on a single goal despite the less-than-comfortable amenities and a lack of acceptance. As Lynette Woodard pointed out, women in her time played with men’s basketball and took shots from the two-point range.

Nobody cared if these women, who put in the same effort, energy, and time as their male counterparts, played. Hence, the popularity was also limited. And that’s where the “Caitlin Clark effect” comes in. “I didn’t used to watch. I’ll be the first to admit,” Bayless said. But now, he and his friends talk at length about her. Why?

“Because she’s doing something I never thought I’d see. She’s shooting true jump shots, step back jump shots from the logo, and making them fairly routinely… And she’s only about 6 feet tall!” Skip finished with an incredulous voice. It’s not that the women before her played badly. No, her teammates in the Fever are actually better than Clark. But they don’t have the ratings that Caitlin has. They don’t bring in viewers like Clark has done.

So as Paul Pierce pointed out, “We’re in the middle of peak social media to where people are making money in college. A lot of dollars and money is going up all across the board with TV.” While Caitlin Clark does have the skillset that has mesmerized the American audience, it might just be that she happened to be born in the right time at the right place, as Keyshawn said.

If Clark had played during Woodard’s time, the chances of her being in the limelight would be zero. As great as a player is, there are more aspects that go into the fame and wealth that comes with it. What do you say? Do you think that Skip Bayless might be right for once on his take on LeBron James? Let us know your thoughts!