WNBA clear air on criticism for prioritizing broadcast of Caitlin Clark’s game over Angel Reese’s preseason debut

WNBA clears air on prioritizing Caitlin Clark’s preseason debut over Angel Reese’s

The debut of Caitlin Clark is one of the most highly anticipated games in the WNBA this season. But aside from Clark, another rookie is expected to make her preseason debut tonight, Angel Reese. Unfortunately, the game between the Chicago Sky and Minnesota Lynx won’t be available on TV.

Both Clark and Reese will suit up for their respective teams and show off in the preseason. But many have called out the league for allegedly prioritizing the debut of the top pick. The Indiana Fever will take on the Dallas Wings tonight and fans will get to watch the game on TV and the WNBA League Pass.

With that, the fans have criticized the league for this issue. But they cleared the air on social media earlier. According to the league, Bally Sports of Minnesota has scheduled an MLB game for the timeslot of Reese’s preseason debut.

They clarified that they do not have control over the game not being available for fans on TV. At the end of their statement, the league assured fans that all games would be available in the league pass.

With Clark and Reese being two of the best college players as of late, it’s no surprise that both of them have garnered attention. There are significant expectations for both rookies as they start their professional careers.

WNBA rookie adjusting to commercial flights

Fans caught sight of Clark at Dallas Fort Worth International Airport with her teammates on Thursday. This was in preparation for the team’s preseason game against the Wings. The viewers immediately pointed out how the WNBA wasn’t flying the team on a charter flight.

The issue of the league not having charter flights for teams resurfaced after this. During her media availability, Clark commented on it and mentioned that it’ll take time for her to adjust to flying commercial.

“It will definitely be an adjustment, but it is what it is,” Clark said.

“It’s not like we’re the odd man out here. Everybody has to navigate it and I think it’s going to cause some problems, maybe, because the popularity of our league is continuing to grow and having to navigate travel with that.”

The issue of the teams in the league not having a charter flight has been around for some time. Fans have pointed out that there could be safety issues that the players could face. For the Fever, general manager Lin Dunn assured fans that the team has security measures in place.

According to Fox News, the league spent $4 million on charter flights during the playoffs last year. This also included back-to-back games that happened during the regular season. Commissioner Cathy Engelbert shared before the 2024 draft that the league would do the same this season.

WNBA Accused Of Racism For Showing Caitlin Clark Instead Of Angel Reese

Who had one on their Bingo cards? Anyone? Of course y’all did! It’s 2024. You ALWAYS take the under when it comes to race-baiting. It took exactly one day for WNBA fans to play the race card.

For those who missed it, Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese both made their WNBA debuts last night. Oh? You didn’t spend your Friday nights watching WNBA preseason games? Well, shame on you!

Plenty of folks did. Clark’s Indiana Fever debut in Dallas was pretty damn packed – if not completely sold out – and those who didn’t/couldn’t attend watched the game on WNBA League Pass.

Now, for those who wanted to watch Reese make her debut with the Chicago Sky, it wasn’t quite as easy. And by that, I mean they had to watch through a Twitter live stream, courtesy of someone’s cell phone camera in the bleachers.

Objectively, that’s funny. Sorry, but it is. Could you imagine sitting around a tiny screen and watching a WNBA game being live-streamed on a cell phone?

Apparently, not everyone thought it was funny. Predictably, plenty of woke progressives thought it was racist!

When in doubt, play the race card. A sure-fire way to grab attention in 2024.

The WNBA is wild embarrassing. To not have Angel Reese and Kamila cordossa games on the league pass is insane. Angel Reese is one of the reasons why women’s basketball is getting so much attention but they made sure to put the white girl front and center, I’m tired of them.

— AJR (@ajr_bcg) May 3, 2024

Angel Reese has over 6 million followers across all platforms but @WNBA wants to make it seem like only Caitlin Clark will bring in views. This is some bs.

— YANA (@isuokayyy) May 3, 2024

That’s why I’ll never watch the @WNBA just another racist company https://t.co/PgbSrHCLUg

— vacant/cardinals/bums (@theseeker909) May 4, 2024

The @WNBA doing Angel Reese and Kamilla Cardoso so wrong. The league is 80% Black women, why aren’t they showing two of the most prolific young women to be drafted?! Whiteness got yall in a chokehold. Fire whoever is making these asinine decisions.

— Sashana (@booksnailsasha) May 3, 2024

lynx vs sky preseason game!! https://t.co/fOHriWWcVV

— alli (@heyheyitsalli) May 4, 2024

WNBA made a business decision with Caitlin Clark, duh

Guys, come on. Do you really think the WNBA is out to get Angel Reese? I mean, come on. Can we just act normal for two seconds?

Of course they’re not! In what world would that be a smart business decision? This is pretty much the last best chance the WNBA has to become relevant.

This infusion of Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese – and others – is a gift from the heavens that the WNBA desperately needed. It’s like finding a winning lotto ticket floating in the water while you’re living under a bridge.

Why in the hell would they jeopardize that one Day 1, Game 1, of the 2024 season? Come on.

Now, do I know exactly why the Indiana Fever game was shown and NOT the Chicago Sky game? Some on social media have said it’s a Bally Sports issue, which wouldn’t surprise me because Bally is generally awful.

I’ve seen this tweet making the rounds, but really haven’t seen it verified anywhere, so you’ll have to take it with a grain of salt:

Blame Bally Sports, not the league #WNBA #CaitlinClark #AngelReese #IndianaFever #ChicagoSky pic.twitter.com/QNEUzoayrk

— mrzouology (@mrzouology63261) May 3, 2024

No clue if that was the case, but it doesn’t really matter. That’s not the point here. I don’t want to get into the intricacies of what can and can’t be streamed, how it works, who owns what – I don’t care. That’s a WNBA problem to deal with. It’s a separate story entirely.

But calling the WNBA racist for promoting the BIGGEST NAME IN WOMEN’S BASKETBALL is silly. Here’s the truth: if Caitlin Clark were black, this wouldn’t be an issue. But because she’s white, there’s always a conspiracy theory. Always.

Again, when in doubt, play the race card. Seems silly to play it against the WNBA, which is one of the wokest leagues in all the land, but hey, sometimes you have to launch a Hail Mary. The wokes always turn on their own. Don’t forget it.

There was no conspiracy. There is no conspiracy. The WNBA made a business decision to promote Caitlin Clark last night, and it would’ve been insane not to.

There’s a reason tickets for Clark’s opener in Dallas were going for over $100 last night. There’s a reason the arena looked like this:

People claiming race that WNBA televised Caitlin Clark (Indiana Fever) not Angel Reese n Kamillo Cardoso (Chicago Sky)
1st pic is crowd at Sky’s (Reese) game in Minnesota
2nd pic is crowd at Fever’s (Clark) game in Dallas.
Just following the money pic.twitter.com/Yxsn2KLhYN

— Life in the Slow Lane (@Lrasmo60) May 4, 2024

Always, always, always, always follow the money. A good lesson for life, frankly.

Money is green, and that’s the only color that mattered here.