"Mind you she was 14 yrs old": Fans defend Arike Ogunbowale after WNBA star deletes old "inflammatory" tweets

Recently, a few old tweets from Arike Ogunbowale drew attention for their allegedly "inflammatory" nature. As a result, the Dallas Wings star has made her X account private and reportedly deleted many of those tweets.

WNBA fans quickly came to Ogunbowale's defense, pointing out that she was just a child when she posted the alleged "inflammatory" tweets. They argued that labeling the tweets as "inflammatory" was an overreaction and blew the situation out of proportion:

"mind you she was 14 yrs old 😭" a fan tweeted.

""Inflammatory tweets" I know you aren’t talking about tweets where a 14 year old Arike called people fat. What even is this account? You make it sound so much worse than it was," a fan said.

"She was a kid. Are people really tripping over this?" a fan added.

""Inflammatory" nah yall are now doing too much lord pls the girl was barely 14," another tweeted.

"Arike was a child making those tweets. 😕" another said.

"she was 12 😭💔" a fan tweeted.

Similarly, WNBA MVP A'ja Wilson faced backlash for old tweets she posted as a teenager.

Arike Ogunbowale tops Paige Bueckers' list of players she wants to face in Unrivaled's 1v1 challenge

Ahead of the upcoming 1-on-1 tournament in Unrivaled's inaugural season, UConn Huskies star Paige Bueckers took to Instagram on Saturday to reveal the list of players she'd like to face in the format. Bueckers listed Arike Ogunbowale as the top player she wants to face in a 1-on-1 challenge, citing Ogunbowale as one of the best 1-on-1 players in the league.

"Out of all the Unrivalved players, I would want to play Arike 1-on-1, definitely, because I feel like she would challenge my defensive skills. She's one of the best 1-on-1 players in the league," Bueckers said.

Beuckers then listed Aaliyah Edwards, Jewell Loyd, Chelsea Gray and Natasha Cloud in that order as her top five preferances.

Unrivaled's 1-on-1 tournament is set to tip off on Monday as 30 players of the league will battle it out for a $350,000 cash prize. Arike Ogunbowale and Jewell Loyd have a bye for the first round of the contest.

Arike Ogunbowale captains the Vinyl BC in the ongoing inaugural season of the Unrivaled 3x3 league in Miami. She is averaging 13.0 points, 3.2 rebounnds and 3.8 assists in the six-team league as Vinyl BC sits fourth in the standings with a 2-4 record.