Fans of Caitlin Clark are calling to boycott ESPN after the Indiana Fever star was on the receiving end of some harsh criticism from their analyst.
Indiana star Clark has dominated the WNBA since being drafted into the league last year, however has endured some hardship in recent weeks.
A groin injury meant Clark missed their game against the Las Vegas Aces, with the Fever not missing a beat, downing one of the league’s best franchises 81-54.
After the match, ESPN analyst Carolyn Peck made the bold claim that the Fever were better without the reigning Rookie of the Year in their side.
Peck said: ‘I think that Indiana is even more dangerous when Caitlin Clark doesn’t play. She’s a ball-dominant guard.
‘The ball is in her hands a lot, so you know what you need to try to take away.’
Caitlin Clark was on the receiving end of scathing criticism from ESPN analysts on Thursday
Clark sat out her fourth straight game and watched on as the Fever dominated the Aces
ESPN analyst Carolyn Peck claimed that the Fever were better off without Clark in the side
The clip was posted onto social media and, shortly afterwards, the replies were flooded with ‘CC’ fans calling to boycott the network.
One user wrote: ‘Who watches ESPN bro? Boycott that useless network’.
‘ESPN’s narrative continues,’ another said.
‘Crazy levels of hate for the person who brought wnba to relevancy’, said one fan.
‘We gotta stop letting some people stop talking basketball,’ another wrote.
Clark also missed Tuesday’s Commissioner’s Cup Final victory, with Indiana handing the Minnesota Lynx only their third loss of the season.
The sophomore phenom has now missed more games for the Fever this season than she has played, as the team is 5-4 without her, and 4-4 with Clark in the lineup.
The former Iowa guard missed five games at the beginning of the WNBA season with a quadriceps injury and has no stated timetable for her return to the court in present day.
Fans of Caitlin Clark were quick to hit back at the criticism and call to boycott ESPN
Clark’s next chance to play will be Saturday evening at home against the Los Angeles Sparks. That contest will be two weeks before the WNBA All-Star Game in Indianapolis, where Clark was voted a captain despite her multiple absences.
Clark was named an All-Star Game captain by being one of the two players receiving the most fan votes. Lynx star Napheesa Collier and Clark will now have the opportunity to draft from a pool of the other WNBA All-Stars to create two teams ahead of the festivities.
Clark gets her second All-Star selection in her sophomore professional season, having represented ‘Team WNBA’ in last year’s extravaganza against Team USA before the Paris Olympics.
Clark was the leading fan vote-getter with 1,293,526, with Collier in second place with 1,176,020 votes.
