“Feel Sorry for These Women”: Fans Turn On Caitlin Clark After Teresa Weatherspoon’s Address Amid WNBA’s Blunder With Angel Reese and Kamilla Cardoso

Unlike Caitlin Clark’s Indiana Fever debut, the Minnesota Lynx vs Chicago Sky pre-season game on Friday wasn’t officially streamed live. Chicago’s loss (92-81) must have left a bitter taste, but for debutants, Angel Reese and Kamilla Cardoso’s fans, the game not being televised was the apple of discord. Meanwhile, the salvage at that point in time came in the form of a fan who decided to livestream the game from the Target Center on X. And in an instant, there were over 400,000 worth viewership waiting on the other side!

After the WNBA failed to deliver on their promise to broadcast the key season opener via YouTube before tip-off, Chicago head coach Teresa Weatherspoon gave her two cents. When she heard from Annie Costabile of the Chicago Sun-Times about the live streaming, T-spoon dropped a thumbs up with a straight face on the camera.

She said, “So many eyes are upon us right now. It’s really good for what you just told us. The eyes that were upon us, no matter what. That’s huge. And yes, we would love for us to be on and for everybody to take a look. Especially this team. You have a great group of young women who are exciting to watch play. Tonight, they had an opportunity to kind of get a feel of what we are and we need to do. So, it’s awesome to know a lot of people tuned in.”

Apparently, the WNBA reportedly has no control over the pre-season game’s broadcasting on TV. In fact, Bally Sports North of Minnesota decided to stream an MLB regular game instead. And hence, when Lynx coach Cheryl Reeve said, “business as usual isn’t going to work anymore,” it couldn’t more true. Later on, the WNBA then released a statement apologizing, “Apologies! Our App is incorrectly showing that every preseason game (including CHI vs MIN) is available on League Pass.”

Interesting fact: The Sky-Lynx game was initially scheduled for Saturday, May 4. But because of the possibility of a Game 7 between the Suns and Timberwolves, the game was moved to Friday.

Many fans and players, including Phoenix Mercury star Brittney Griner, do not seem to be happy at all. Undeniably, fans have remained divided for the Chi Barbie and the 2x Naismith awardee.

Is the WNBA prioritizing Caitlin Clark and Co. over the likes of Angel Reese?

According to some fans, the WNBA is only trying to build the legacy of Caitlin Clark while snubbing other significant players like Angel Reese. Consequently, a disappointed YouTube user wrote, “Wnba are messing up already because all they care about is CC and I’m already sick of it!!!!!” However, it is interesting to note that the league is showing signs of earning their fans’ trust back. Gauging the overwhelming demand, the league confirmed on Monday that the next Chicago Sky preseason game (the one against the New York Liberty on League Pass) will be streamed live on May 7 at 8 PM ET.

One Sky fan couldn’t help but speak on how much effort the three rookies of Chicago have put to be here today, “WNBA IS SAD.. I FEEL SORRY FOR THESE WOMEN.” This also brings to mind how Angel Reese was ‘welcomed‘ to the Sky. To date, her appearance in just a hoodie without proper media coverage or celebration for the introductory press conference is a part of the debate. 

“That’s why people don’t watch the WNBA .. don’t even put any highlights .. only Clark .. they. Put on .. a lot of hype in Clark. You want WNBA to grow ! Then they should put all the team.” Although fans would have liked all pre-season games to show, the WNBA didn’t do markedly any different than what they did last season. The only pre-season moments that were televised last year were Sky-Lynx and No. 1 overall pick Aliyah Boston’s debut with the Fever. It seems the misinformation in their app is a cross the WNBA has to bear.

Joining the rest, one more Angel Reese fan did not shy away and said that they are not fans of the WNBA’s new golden goose, “The WNBA should have broadcast their game!11 not everyone is a Clark fan!” Knowing that the WNBA will be covering the next pre-season game for Angel Reese and the Sky against New York, fans might just be finally able to watch their favorite college basketball superstars spring to pro action.