Stephen A. Smith Uses Peculiar Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Larry Bird, Magic Johnson Analogy to Detail Caitlin Clark-Angel Reese Rivalry

You can’t have a basketball game between the Indiana Fever and the Chicago Sky without having any mention of Angel Reese and Caitlin Clark. On Sunday, though the Fever trumped Sky by a 91-83 margin what stood out between them was when Reese hit Clark on the head and was given a foul. The foul was then reviewed by the referees and upgraded to flagrant 1 foul. However, fans were divided on their judgment.

Some stated that it was because Reese had always been a rival to Clark and hence she was intentionally trying to dominate Clark with her physicality, others stated that it was a basketball play. Even Reese and Clark in their post-game interview opined that it was basketball play with no hidden intentions. And now Stephen A. Smith has come forward with his take on the same.

Stephen A. Smith uses an odd analogy to compare Angel Reese and Caitlin Clark

Smith was present during a news session at First Take when he thought out the entire issue and gave his perspective on the same. Although he agreed with Reese and denied any intentional foul play, the 56-year-old opined that the same would have received a flagrant 1 foul even in the NBA.

Reese had actually blamed the referees after the game for siding with Clark and giving her a flagrant 1 foul which she thought she didn’t deserve. Therefore, Smith came forward to clear the air over it. Plus, he used a peculiar Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Larry Bird, and Magic Johnson analogy to also deny any rivalry between Reese and Clark.

“It was a basketball play and Angel Reese is right about that um, but what they called against her in terms of upgrading it to a flagrant one is exactly what they would have done in the NBA as well,” Smith stated, via First Take. 

“I don’t view this as much of a rivalry in this respect and this is just me and just how I think about basketball Kareem Abdul Jabar ain’t competing with Larry Bird as much as Magic Johnson was going up against Larry Bird. You see what I’m saying even though Larry Bird was a forward and Magic Johnson was the point guard both of them 6’8″-6’9″ you understand what I’m saying they’re going up against one another their responsibilities to their team,” Smith continued.

Smith also brought in an analogy from Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Larry Bird, and Magic Johnson. As per Smith, Bird was competing with Johnson since both were nearly the same height and were forwards and point guards and had tended against each other in the play. Whereas Jabbar was a center. As per him similarly, Clark is known for her three-pointers and long-distance shooting while Reese is the double-double queen. Both of them have a different gameplay and hence cannot be compared. As per Smith, some other players can have a rivalry with Clark.

Stephen A. Smith mentioned who could be Caitlin Clark’s rival

As per Smith, the New York Liberty star Sabrina Ionescu can have a rivalry with Clark since both are proficient at long-distance shooting. Ionescu even competed in the all-star three-pointer shooting game with Stephen Curry whereas Clark was often termed as the Curry of women’s NCAA basketball during her time at the Iowa Hawkeyes. 

“if you’re talking to me. If… if…if Ionescu and Caitlin Clark were going at one another now that’s a rivalry that I’m willing to entertain because their games are similar yes,” Smith enumerated.

Hopefully, now that Smith has come forward to share his point of view, people will forget about the Clark-Reese rivalry and instead start comparing apples to apples.

Stay tuned for more such updates, and to follow what Shaq’s ex-agent, Leonard Armato, has to say about the Reese-Clark rivalry and more, watch this video.