ESPN’s Rebecca Lobo Apologizes For Calling America 'Great' On WNBA Broadcast
During Sunday’s broadcast of the Indiana Fever versus Las Vegas Aces game, ESPN’s Rebecca Lobo apologized for apparently sounding too MAGA, a moment as absurd as it sounds.
CLEVELAND, OHIO - APRIL 04: TV personality Rebecca Lobo speaks to media during an ESPN commentator meet & greet ahead of the 2024 NCAA Women's Basketball Tournament Final Four at Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse on April 04, 2024 in Cleveland, Ohio. (Photo by Steph Chambers/Getty Images)
While discussing a foul call, Lobo and WNBA play-by-play announcer Pam Ward debated officiating. Lobo noted that Ward’s disagreement with her on the assessment of a foul on a screening Aces player "makes America great," a comment that left Ward silent.
UPDATE: ESPN, Disney & WNBA Silent On Rebecca Lobo Apologizing For Saying 'That's What Makes America Great'
"So they disagree with you?" Ward asked.
Lobo responded, "They do, and I disagree with them, and that’s fine. That’s what makes America great, right, Pam Ward?"
SPOKANE, WASHINGTON - MARCH 31: Rebecca Lobo, ESPN commentator, looks on prior to the game between the UConn Huskies and the USC Trojans in the Elite Eight round of the NCAA Women's Basketball Tournament at Spokane Arena on March 31, 2025 in Spokane, Washington. (Photo by Steph Chambers/Getty Images)
Ward, seemingly uncomfortable with Lobo’s politically conservative phrasing — despite knowing Lobo isn’t a conservative — left her in silence.
Lobo soon backtracked.
"I should rephrase that," Lobo said, prompted by Ward’s reaction.
"Yeah, I did think differences of opinion are perfectly fine," Ward replied.
"Yes, that’s a better way to say it. Sorry," Lobo conceded.
Yet, her need to apologize for a phrase that vaguely echoed "Make America Great Again" — Donald Trump’s famous slogan — suggested an oversensitivity to the sitting Republican president.
WATCH THE RIDICULOUS APOLOGY:
Rebecca Lobo’s Cowardly Move (And Some Politics)
Lobo, a trailblazing women's basketball star, played in the WNBA from 1997 to 2003 for the New York Liberty, earning All-WNBA Second Team (1997) and All-Star (1999) honors. She also represented the U.S., winning Olympic gold (1996), and competed in FIBA U18 (1992, silver) and U19 (1993, seventh).
The US women's basketball team (American basketball players Teresa Edwards, Dawn Staley, Ruthie Bolton, Sheryl Swoopes, Jennifer Azzi, Lisa Leslie, Carla McGhee, Katy Steding, Katrina McClain, Rebecca Lobo, Venus Lacey and Nikki McCray) celebrates during the women's basketball event medal ceremony, after the gold-medal game between Brazil and the USA, at the 1996 Summer Olympics, at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta, Georgia, 4th August 1996. The United States won the match 111-87. (Photo by Alexander Hassenstein/Bongarts/Getty Images)
The US women's basketball team (American basketball players Teresa Edwards, Dawn Staley, Ruthie Bolton, Sheryl Swoopes, Jennifer Azzi, Lisa Leslie, Carla McGhee, Katy Steding, Katrina McClain, Rebecca Lobo, Venus Lacey and Nikki McCray) celebrates during the women's basketball event medal ceremony, after the gold-medal game between Brazil and the USA, at the 1996 Summer Olympics, at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta, Georgia, 4th August 1996. The United States won the match 111-87. (Photo by Alexander Hassenstein/Bongarts/Getty Images)
The ESPN commentator’s initial comment about freedom of disagreement in America felt genuine, but her retraction seemed to appease Ward and, perhaps, the network’s broader political pressure.
In the modern-day liberal agenda, it’s wrong to be proud of America. Sunday’s game coincided with a surge of patriotism after a U.S. operation aiding Israel neutralized Iran’s nuclear capabilities was deemed a success around the globe.
American-made worldwide peace … if ever there was a day to celebrate American exceptionalism, it was Sunday.
READ: WNBA Player Natasha Cloud Calls For Trump Impeachment After Bombing Iran
Lobo’s choice to apologize instead felt like a misstep by the overly cautious ESPN commentator.
Only an ESPN-WNBA broadcast is capable of clunkier political posturing than Mark Jones or Stan Verrett. Given that they all work for the same network (though Verrett was recently let go), ESPN’s politically biased analysts are drawing major attention in the form of bad press.
The WNBA’s on-court product, featuring Caitlin Clark, remains a hit, but the league and its associated networks’ production and commentary continue to alienate fans, squandering the chance to fully capitalize on her stardom.
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