ESPN's Carolyn Peck Has An All-Time Hot Take On Caitlin Clark
Indiana's star guard continues to be a lightning rod for some all-time awful takes.
Pop quiz time!
Do you think the Indiana Fever are more or less dangerous without All-Star guard Caitlin Clark on the floor?
If you answered "less," congratulations! You are now more qualified to discuss basketball than ESPN's WNBA analyst Carolyn Peck.
Peck's argument is that Indiana's far more dangerous when Caitlin Clark doesn’t play because "she’s a ball-dominant guard."
Ah, yes, I suppose the 2005-06 Lakers were way more dangerous when Kobe Bryant was on the bench NOT scoring 35 points per game, you know, since he's a ball-dominant guard and all.
Let's look into some numbers to try and unravel the lunacy of Peck's claims.
The Fever have identical records of 5-4 this season both with and without Clark, but their offensive efficiency jumps by more than five points with their superstar guard in the lineup.
While their defensive numbers tick up a bit, I doubt anyone references defensive efficiency when referring to a team as "dangerous," so I don't believe that's the feather in the cap Peck was going for with her comments.
Besides, the numbers with and without Caitlin Clark represent an minuscule sample size, which is kind of my point here: it might be a little too early to make such a bold claim one way or another.
Social media seems to have had enough of the narrative spin happening within the world of sports media when it comes to Clark and the undue hate she receives.
It's fascinating to see everyone getting wise to ESPN's act in real time.
No one actually believes the Fever are more dangerous or even a better team without Clark on the floor, regardless of win-loss record or defensive ratings.
It's all clickbait at this point.
Peck, and the network at large, are just driving this strange narrative against quite possibly the brightest star in women's sports, and it makes no sense.
The WNBA is at an all-time high watermark in terms of popularity thanks to the likes of Clark, and all the league and media seem to do is try to drag her into the mud.
Instead of appreciating what Clark has done for the league and women's sports, it's more salacious to bash her every chance they get.
I will never understand why the WNBA can't just ride the Caitlin Clark wave to relevancy, but it's proof positive that the old adage "this is why we can't have nice things" remains as poignant as ever.