“Angel Reese definitely would not deserve" - Former WNBA player laments bold take on Caitlin Clark's gear going to Dick's stores

Former WNBA player Val Whiting discussed the decision of Dick's Sporting Goods to carry the apparel of Indiana Fever rookie Caitlin Clark in all of its US stores. Some online have claimed that Clark only gets this honor because she is white, which Whiting refuted.

Clark is the first female athlete to be granted such a platform. She joins Lionel Messi, Travis Kelce and Deion Sanders as the only athletes to have their apparel featured in all their stores.

Whiting, a two-time NCAA champion with Stanford who played in the WNBA, rued that some quarters surmised that Clark's deal with Dick's stores was because of her race. Whiting took to X to express her views:

"Angel Reese definitely would not deserve to have her gear in Dicks. I'd be upset about that too. There are vets that are PROVEN out here. Don't minimize every push-back to race. It's juvenile and short sighted."

Caitlin Clark was selected first overall by the Fever in this year's WNBA draft following a collegiate run where she captured global attention with her performances.

In her final year at Iowa, Clark broke the record for most points scored in a career in Division I, long held by Pete Maravich, finishing her run with 3,951 points to the 3,667 of 'Pistol Pete'.

Also, the games that the 22-year-old star played set records for NCAA attendance, TV viewership and ticket demand.

Sheryl Swoopes recognizes what Caitlin Clark did for women's college basketball

WNBA legend and Basketball Hall-of-Famer Sheryl Swoopes is not at all surprised that Caitlin Clark is in the spotlight, considering what she was able to do for women's college basketball. After a stellar college career at the University of Iowa, Clark is viewed as among the biggest draws in the upcoming WNBA season.

In a report that came out on CBS Sports, Swoopes, a four-time league champion with the Houston Comets, said Clark deserves the attention:

"Caitlin Clark is probably the best shooter, especially in the college game, that I've ever seen. I'm not saying there haven't been others, but that I've ever seen.

"She has absolutely taken the women's game to a different level. She'sbrought more eyes, people who never watched a single game of women's basketball tuned in because they wanted to see who is this little girl from Iowa shooting these logo 3s."

Clark will play her first WNBA game on May 14 when the Fever takes on the Connecticut Suns in a road game.