Caitlin Clark‘s feud with Skylar Diggins-Smith and the Seattle Storm sent the entire sports world into a frenzy on Sunday. But nobody reacted as emotionally as Shannon Sharpe, who flew off the handle in an explosive rant on the Night Cap Show.
Watch Shannon Sharpe’s rant on Caitlin Clark
Clearly, the former NFL star and Fox Sports host is on Clark’s side in her ongoing tension with veteran stars of the WNBA who have not enjoyed the way she has taken over the league so fast.
On Sunday, it was Diggins-Smith who joined the list of players like Chicago Sky’s Chennedy Carter and Phoenix Mercury‘s Diana Taurasi in taking shots at the generational Indiana Fever rookie. Sharpe emptied the clip on everyone in the WNBA who Clark has proved wrong.
“Stop this!” He screamed in front of his co-host Chad Ochocinco, who continued poking Unc to lean into his fury. “Y’all mad because that cornfed Iowa girl busting y’all ass!”
Let Caitlin Clark cook
Sharpe’s wild antics may have overshadowed his point, but they perfectly mirrored what he was trying to say about Clark. “Caitlin Clark is getting the crowd going,” he said. “Let her cook!”
Clark’s presence has been undeniably positive for the WNBA, which has set countless attendance and TV viewership records in her first half season as a pro. The league already negotiated a new lucrative media rights contract, opening the door for upgrades to player experience like universal charter flights.
And yet, some of the experienced players around the W refuse to “let her cook” and instead resent Clark, fairly or unfairly, for becoming the face of the league so quickly.
The irony is that every time another person challenges Clark, the cycle repeats and the conversation around the WNBA grows louder and louder. This kind of rant by Shannon Sharpe used to be reserved for the Dallas Cowboys or the Kansas City Chiefs on a Monday morning.
Like it or not, Caitlin Clark is at the center of the sports world, not just the WNBA. Her rivals around the league would be wise to take Unc’s advice: Let. Her. Cook.