"Starting to feel like hate" - Elle Duncan sneak disses Sheryl Swoopes for undermining Caitlin Clark's impact on Fever

ESPN anchor Elle Duncan has called out Sheryl Swoopes’ frequent negative comments about Indiana Fever rookie Caitlin Clark. She suggests that Swoopes' remarks are starting to seem more like personal animosity than informed analysis.

Duncan highlighted that Swoopes had previously criticized Caitlin Clark without providing substantial analysis, and with Swoopes' recent comments, she said it appears more like hatred.

Swoopes recently downplayed Clark’s impact on the Fever, implying the team could reach the playoffs without her. Duncan countered this by noting that the Fever were not a playoff team last year and have improved significantly with Clark on the roster.

“This just doesn't feel right at all, and it is starting to feel a little bit like hate from Sheryl,” Duncan said.

“Like the Fever, who won a handful of games last year, are in the playoffs this year? You have to understand that a large part of that is Caitlin Clark and Aaliyah Boston. Either one of them, I would have accepted either one of those conclusions.”

Gary Striewski, Duncan’s co-host, added that Clark's impact is evident in the team's performance. The Indiana Fever won only 13 games last year, finishing 10th out of 12 teams.

This season, they are the seventh seed and on track to make the playoffs, just two wins away from matching their total wins from last year. He also pointed out that Clark leads the team in every statistical category except rebounding.

“I don't understand what angle you can look at with this argument she's making and think, 'You know what? There's some validity there,'” he said.

“That's insane. You can make the argument that the Chicago Sky are worse than they were last year, and last year they were a playoff team. That's crazy. They're almost fringe.”

Before the WNBA's pause, the Indiana Fever had an 11-15 record for the seventh seed, while Angel Reese's Chicago Sky had a 10-14 record for the eighth seed.

What Swoopes recently said about Caitlin Clark

On her podcast "Queens of the Court," Swoopes suggested Clark's influence on the Fever might be overstated, arguing that the team has a solid roster.

"Is Indiana in the playoffs right now, without Caitlin?...When you look at the overall team, like the pieces that they have, without question, Indiana has better players than Chicago from top to bottom. No doubt about it," she said.

However, WNBA advanced stats show that the Fever's offensive rating is 103.6 with Clark on the floor and drops to 93.9 without her.

Caitlin Clark is averaging 17.1 points, 5.8 rebounds, and a league-leading 8.2 assists per game this season.

She also set the single-game record for assists (19) and recorded the first triple-double by a rookie in WNBA history.