Antonio Brown nominates Caitlin Clark, Hawk Tuah girl for his hilarious award

Caitlin Clark has won several Athlete of the Year accolades following her remarkable 2024, but she was also nominated for another, more infamous one — by NFL legend Antonio Brown, who is known for his controversial social media posts, including his offensive “CTESPN” commentary and “Cracker of the Day” awards.

Brown nominated Clark for the “Cracker Moment of the Year” award, alongside media figure Dave Portnoy, Hawk Tuah girl Hailey Welch and outgoing US President Joe Biden.

Antonio Brown's "cracker" awards are sarcastic titles he assigns to individuals, usually in a mocking manner. The term has become widely recognized due to Brown’s social media posts, especially on X (formerly Twitter), where he uses it to call attention to public figures for their controversial behavior or remarks.

In April, Brown shared two explicit tweets about Clark’s pubic hair within minutes of each other, both of which garnered thousands of likes. He later disclosed that he had been blocked by the WNBA star after the posts.

READ: NFL legend cries foul after Caitlin Clark blocks him on social media upon tweeting a swathe of memes

In May, Brown apologized on Jason Whitlock’s show, though he ended with another crude remark about pubic hair.

He began by sincerely saying:

“Caitlin Clark, we love you, there is no drama here. I’m excited about what you’re going to do for women’s basketball. You’re an amazing player. I love to watch your game, you bring a lot of excitement and energy.

“Continue to be great, continue to keep focused on being the best athlete you want to be, continue to lead women’s sports, pioneering it the way you want to pioneer it. I have a daughter; they look up to you and they look up to everything you guys are doing.”

But he concluded with a joke:

“So, shout out to you, Caitlin Clark, and if it’s hairy, don’t worry about it.”

Caitlin Clark addresses handling negativity

While Caitlin Clark has brought significant attention to women's basketball, she has also faced her share of criticism. Having been in the spotlight since her college days, Clark has learned to tune out the negativity.

Clark explained her ability to block out criticism, saying:

“I have a great skill of just blocking it out. I don't care what people say about me.” (per TIME)

She pointed out that much of the criticism comes from people who aren’t longtime fans of the WNBA.

“A lot of people that wanted to have opinions on what was happening probably didn't even watch half the games that they were trying to have a take on and hadn't supported the W for a really long time,” Clark said.

“I tell people I feel like the most controversial person,” Clark added. “But I am not. It’s just because of all the storylines that surround me. I literally try to live and treat everybody in the same exact respectful, kind way. It just confuses me at times.”

Clark’s debut year in the WNBA was exceptional, earning First Team All-WNBA honors, being named Rookie of the Year, breaking records in assists and 3-point shooting and contributing to the league’s rising viewership and attendance.

She was named TIME Athlete of the Year and AP Female Athlete of the Year during the offseason.