Sheryl Swoopes has responded to claims that she was removed from commentary at an Indiana Fever game for her criticism of Caitlin Clark. She said she “should never have played that game in the first place.”
Fans and media took notice when Swoopes, who had been calling Dallas Wings games for Bally Sports Southwest, was not in the booth when the team took on the Fever on September 1.
And while many — including ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith — claimed Swoopes was pulled from the game, Swoopes said on Angel Reese’s podcast that her contract with Bally Sports expired before the game.
“They were like, ‘Oh Sheryl got replaced, they fired her, they kicked her out of the game because it’s Caitlin Clark, and she can’t do that game,’” Swoopes began. Unapologetic Angel.
“I was signed for seven Dallas Wings games, so I was never supposed to play that game anyway. But through everything else, [people] I just thought that because I didn’t play that game, they fired me, but actually my contract was up… and that was it, it was nothing.”
Sheryl Swoopes poured cold water on the theory that she couldn’t call the Fever anymore
Swoopes was previously critical of Clark, who she said “didn’t dominate” the WNBA
Ron Thulin and Nancy Lieberman called the match for Bally Sports, and the latter appeared on Smith’s show afterward.
Lieberman confirmed Smith’s theory about Swoopes’ alleged removal, saying television network producers would not want obvious biases to find their way into broadcasts.
Swoopes’ apparent bias against Clark is well documented.
Swoopes first came under fire regarding Clark in March, saying her NCAA D1 scoring record was “not legit” because she was a 25-year-old player in her fifth year and that she took “about 40 shots per competition’. ‘. Clark was 22 and in her fourth (not fifth) season at Iowa.
In August, Swoopes incredibly didn’t mention Clark when discussing the Fever’s strong form after the Olympics – a move Smith decried.
Clark had a stellar rookie season and was ultimately named Rookie of the Year this week
In the discussion, Swoopes mentioned people like Lexie Hull, Kelsey Mitchell and Aaliyah Boston, but not Clark.
“With all due respect, Sheryl Swoopes, do you have any idea what that makes you look like? Do you have any idea how that could taint any criticism of Caitlin Clark?,” Smith said on his eponymous show. ‘Because it gives fodder to those who believe that she is hated and excluded to some extent. Do you realize, Sheryl Swoopes, that you’re crazy to do that? Let me tell you why you are crazy to do that. Because, Sheryl Swoopes, you are one of the greatest players ever in the history of basketball, and that’s why.
He continued, “You see, you won a championship in college at Texas Tech. You have won three Olympic gold medals. You’ve won four WNBA championships. You know basketball. You know basketball better than I do; you know basketball [better] than any expert. You know basketball better than most guys who play basketball. There’s no way you accidentally left Caitlin Clark’s name out of the monologue you dropped about the Indiana Fever — stop that.
Earlier this month, Swoopes also said she didn’t believe Clark — the WNBA’s Rookie of the Year — is “dominating” the league.
Nevertheless, Rookie of the Year voters seemed to disagree and Clark will look to come back even stronger next year after her Fever lost in the first round of the play-offs.