"We witness her get blitzed by women" - Ex-NBA guard doubles down on Caitlin Clark's GOAT status as Fever's preseason tickets sell at record pace

Caitlin Clark is scheduled to return to Carver-Hawkeye Arena on May 4 as the Indiana Fever take on Brazil's national team. On Thursday, Clark's alma mater, the University of Iowa, announced that tickets to the game sold out in less than an hour.

Thislatest demonstration of Clark's drawing power led former NBA guard Rashad McCants to make a bold claim about her. McCants, a frequent guest on the "Gil's Arena" podcast, commented on the Fever star's ability to withstand the onslaught of naysayers:

"Like I said THE FACE OF THE NBA!!! This is the metric. Sold out in minutes. Preseason!!!" McCants tweeted in part on Saturday. "We witness her get blitz by peers, alumni, randoms, politicians, and above all else women!!"

Since entering the WNBA, Clark has endured her fair share of critics, including some prominent figures in sports and media. Former WNBA star Sheryl Swoopes, for one, claimed that Clark wasn't "dominating" in her rookie season.

Also, when Time published its piece on Clark being named Athlete of the Year, conservative analyst Megyn Kelly slammed Clark's comments on elevating Black women as "condescending" and "fake."

The last time Clark was in Carver-Hawkeye Arena for a major event, she acknowledged that criticism is a common human experience:

"I think it's just life," Clark said before her Hawkeyes jersey retirement. "Everybody goes through the same stuff that I’ve gone through, and a lot of people go through a lot worse."

The reigning WNBA Rookie of the Year added that one of her "greatest skills" was not caring about what critics had to say.

Caitlin Clark reacts to retirement of WNBA all-time great

While Caitlin Clark certainly knows how to deal with naysayers, she has gone out of her way to pay respect to elite athletes who paved the way for young stars like her.

After three-time WNBA champion and 20-year veteran Diana Taurasi decided to call it a career, Clark went on Instagram last week to pay tribute to the Phoenix Mercury icon:

"Legend," Clark wrote in an IG story featuring Taurasi.

Taurasi announced her retirement in an exclusive interview with Time, the same publication that named Caitlin Clark its Athlete of the Year.