Debate rages on whether Caitlin Clark is unfairly criticized

Indiana Fever guard Caitlin Clark (22) gets the crowd excited Tuesday, May 20, 2025, during a game between the Indiana Fever and the Atlanta Dream at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis. The Atlanta Dream defeated the Indiana Fever, 91-90.

The Indiana Fever have the face of its franchise back in superstar Caitlin Clark, who is fully healthy and back on the hardwood after missing all but 13 games last season with various soft tissue injuries, including a nagging groin that cost her the entire second half of the season, including an unlikely playoff run by Indiana.

The Fever will open its season on Saturday against the Dallas Wings, and with the season so close, the scrutiny around Clark and the Fever is beginning to heat up. Sports reporter Jemele Hill recently covered Clark being passed by Wings’ guard Paige Bueckers as WNBA GMs’ preferred player to build a franchise around in an anonymous survey, and previously posted about the potential of Clark’s trademark long threes putting the Fever in a compromised position.

Many fans feel that Hill, along with other members of sports media, is treating Clark unfairly.

“Disgusted by these credentialed media personalities who are obsessed with constantly bashing and trying to tear down Caitlin. They don’t even have to celebrate her, but the nonstop hate and manufactured narratives to ‘prove’ something are pathetic,” one fan posted on X.

“Criticism of Caitlin Clark has gone beyond normal analysis. There’s a noticeable difference in how she’s talked about compared to other players in the WNBA,” someone else added.