Barstool founder Dave Portnoy took aim at veteran sports columnist Nancy Armour after she invoked Emmett Till in an article about the WNBA’s Caitlin Clark.
Indiana Fever superstar Clark has found herself at the center of yet another WNBA storm in recent weeks following multiple violent on-court clashes with rivals, which have sparked outrage among some fans and analysts for perceived no-calls from the officials.
USA Today writer Armour waded into the debate on Wednesday ahead of the WNBA All-Star weekend, instead criticizing Clark for ‘flopping’ in her latest column.
Armour, while insisting that she is ‘not a Clark hater,’ claimed that the former No 1 overall pick’s flopping was ‘dangerous.’
She suggested that Clark has ‘spun a narrative’ about no-calls on fouls against her, as well as over-exaggerating contact from her opponents in an attempt to draw a foul.
Yet, Armour raised eyebrows – and sparked backlash from some – with one particular paragraph that claimed that Clark’s actions were specifically putting black and queer WNBA players at risk.
Barstool founder Dave Portnoy took aim at veteran sports columnist Nancy Armour
The USA Today writer criticized Indiana Fever star for flopping in her latest column
‘It shouldn’t need reminding this country has an awful history of Black people being harmed, even killed, in the name of “defending” white women,’ she wrote.
‘The WNBA’s All-Star Game this weekend is in Chicago, Emmett Till’s hometown, and a local art gallery is currently hosting an exhibit imagining his life if he hadn’t been lynched. While it’s incumbent on the WNBA to do more to protect its players, there also should be an expectation on Clark to recognize the wider consequences of her actions.’
Till was born and raised in Chicago but was lynched while visiting family in Mississippi at the age of 14 in 1955. The particularly brutal and horrific nature of the murder and the acquittal of his killers helped to mobilize the civil rights movement.
Armour’s paragraph in her column on Clark’s in-game antics drew a furious reaction from Portnoy, an avid fan of the Fever guard.
‘Congrats to USA Today’s Nancy Armour! She has written the dumbest paragraph not only of my lifetime but in the history of sports,’ the Barstool chief wrote on X, alongside a screen grab of the section in question.
‘This is an article that says @CaitlinClark22 arguing calls has become dangerous for the @wnba and civil rights. Nancy Armour should be put in a straight jacket and locked up. We can’t have these types of smooth brains roaming freely in society.’
Others echoed Portnoy’s anger in the comments with one posting: ‘Lynching, Emmett Till, and Caitlin Clark in the same paragraph is simply insane.’
‘How did an article about Caitlin Clark also include Emmitt (sic) Till… there’s something seriously wrong with that person’s brain,’ said another.
Fever star Clark was punched in the throat by Phoenix Mercury forward Alyssa Thomas
‘Dropping Emmett Till in an article about the WNBA all-star game has to be an all-timer ragebait,’ added a third.
However, others defended the columnist, claiming that her views were correct.
Armour released a statement on Thursday afternoon addressing the backlash and her reference to Till’s murder.
‘In my recent column, I made an inartful comparison with the murder of Emmett Till,’ she said. ‘I intended to connect the issues the WNBA is currently facing with its All-Star Game being hosted in Till’s hometown of Chicago.
‘I obviously did not provide enough context for that.
‘However, this point stands: There is a history in this country of perceived threats to white women being weaponized against African-Americans, and the danger that poses to Black players in the league.
‘Players have been abused online and have reported receiving death threats. That has to be taken more seriously.
‘I sincerely regret that my lack of appropriate context is overshadowing that important conversation and the action that needs to be taken by the WNBA to address it directly – for the benefit of ALL players.’
She also appeared to get an elbow to the midriff from Las Vegas star Chelsea Gray this month
Clark has been at the center of fierce controversy in the WNBA of late, with Phoenix Mercury star Alyssa Thomas recently punching her in the throat during a game against the Fever.
The shocking incident sparked outrage across the country as fans argued that Clark, who has been subjected to aggressive tactics by players since being drafted by Indiana in 2024, is not receiving protection on the court from WNBA officials.
Earlier this month, she was also floored by Las Vegas Aces player Chelsea Gray in an incident that was reviewed by referees for a ‘hostile act.’
Clark tried to defend Gray during the second quarter of her team’s 109-75 victory, but as she tried to stop her from getting her shot away, the Aces star appeared to use her left elbow to strike her midriff.
Both Gray and Thomas revealed following the incidents that they had received vile racist abuse as well as death threats.
Hilton Grand Vacations has since fired an unnamed male employee who is accused of sending the disgusting slur to Gray on social media.
Clark lost her cool with referee Gerda Gatling during the game against the Golden State Valkyries on July 15.
The official penalized Clark’s teammate Aliyah Boston for a foul on Golden State’s Veronica Burton, just moments after Clark was not awarded a foul of her own.
Clark went berserk during the Fever’s game against the Golden State Valkyries last week
Minutes earlier, the three-time All-Star went for a lay-up and fell to the ground after being challenged by Kiah Stokes, yet the referee chose not to call a foul.
She therefore exploded when Burton was awarded one shortly after, waving her arms animatedly before racing over to the official and shouting in her face.
Most recently, Clark was caught on camera mocking Connecticut Sun rival Saniya Rivers as her Indiana Fever team recorded an emphatic 123-88 WNBA win on Wednesday night.
Clark and Rivers clashed near the end of the third quarter, with Rivers penalized for grabbing Clark while she dribbled with the ball.
But perhaps frustratingly for Clark, her taunts of Rivers landed her with a technical foul, her seventh of the season. If she gets another, she will be banned for a game
