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Caitlin Clark fans revisited a controversial take by ESPN analyst Elle Duncan about the WNBA star's effect on the league. On Friday, Duncan appeared as a guest on "The Sports Gossip Show," where she talked about viewership numbers for this year's NCAA women's tournament.
Duncan compared viewership for the 2025 championship with that of 2023 while omitting last year's competition that Clark played in. She claimed the 2024 national championship was an anomaly because lots of people tuned in to watch Caitlin Clark, and as such, it can't be used to judge the numbers.
"Guys, we knew last year was anomalous," she said (timestamp 2:22). "We had a feeling that it would probably not carry over to the next year. Because the truth is that Caitlin Clark, Angel Reese, all these girls are generational type of talents, and Caitlin Clark is like something that we've never seen before.
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"So it stands to reason that, as such, the ratings will be impacted when she is no longer in that space. The reason we are comparing this year's numbers to 2023 is because, before last year, 2023 was setting ratings marks ... So, we actually have to track the numbers and measure real growth from 2023."
However, fans of the Indiana Fever star quickly dug up an old video of Duncan berating new WNBA fans for making the league 'toxic.'
Some fans suggested that her previous comments might be the reason why the 2025 women's championship dropped off in viewership. They took to X (formerly Twitter) to react.
"It's almost like Elle has never watched sports before. She needs to go to the Twitter space of European football. Fans of opposing teams argue, and even internal team arguments happen daily. And it is brutal," one fan wrote.
"This woman is intolerable," another fan commented.
"The bloke who she works with on ESPN Stephen A Smith said himself that he or no-one talked about the WNBA before because no-one watched no-one cared SO what years prior bullsh*t is she talking about "joy" what that no-one was watching lmao Generational players NO "player" Caitlin," another fan chimed in.
"She’s a clown," wrote another fan.
"Crazy part...THEY controlled the tv narratives and used that time to complain instead of report. I guess it would be tiring constantly being in rebuttal. BE A PROFESSIONAL- talk sports not gossip. But all we got was gaslit about rebounds and constant reminders of the greats," commented another fan.
"What a shitty a*s take from someone who contributed to the “not about basketball” conversation FOH," another fan added.
With the 2025 season ever closer, it will be interesting to see how the conversation about Clark's impact moves on.
Elle Duncan previously backed Caitlin Clark for the TIME Athlete of the Year
Despite her often controversial takes on Caitlin Clark, Elle Duncan supported the Indiana Fever player for the 2024 TIME Magazine Athlete of the Year award. Clark was honored for her achievements both in college and her debut season in professional women's basketball.
Duncan shared a tweet back in December where she praised Clark's accomplishments.
Clark is the first WNBA star ever to receive the prestigious award and the second female athlete to win it, after American gymnast Simone Biles in 2021.
