If the women's game was played with a men's regulation sized basketball I would be all with the Caitlin Clark media frenzy. But the women's game is played with a smaller basketball but with the same sized hoop. To me it's easier for the smaller ball to fit through the hoop compared to a men's basketball. I am tired of the women's basketball game being compared to the men's when they play with a smaller ball. It is not apples to apples. Apologies to anyone offended but I cannot take the Clark hoopla. The other being Swift and Kelse.
Two things I am tired about hearing about Caitlin Clark.
- Thread starter dcf4psu
- Start date
That certainly doesn’t discount anything she’s accomplishing…every women’s player has played with the same ball forever, but she’s still a generational talent.
Do we discount everything our women’s volleyball team has accomplished due to slight differences?
Are they comparing her to men? I think it's relative to other women, right?
And women are not as tall or strong, so they have to use more force to get the ball to the hoop. Their hands are also smaller, which is the main reason for the ball being slightly smaller so that they can have better control
Pearl Moore should be talked about "more" and of course there was no 3 point shot at that time. Of course, today's media does a lot of celebrating.
I don’t think anyone is saying Caitlin would be better than the men if she played against them. They’re comparing her to others that use the same sized ball.
B1G needs something about Iowa to talk about.....football they aren't so good....wrestling they aren't who everyone thinks they are....basketball, heck they lost to us....so the pride of the West is putrid and Clark is about all they have to brag about!
From my experience in Iowa, they don’t need something to brag about to do so.
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Good to know you're triggered by petty things especially those involving popular women.
So give caitlin clark some big balls and see if she can score.
Nice to see people defending her. She is a great talent, fun to watch and bringing a lot of attention to her sport. As a sports fan, this is great and I love seeing er dominant and if another team can figure out how to stop her.
But they are. Every graphic shows how many points behind Pistol Pete she is. Even though he only played 3 yrs, and played without a 3 pt line. Oh ya and with a larger ball which was tougher to get in the basket.
Pete would've had 5000 pts with a 3 pt line and extra year.
OK, you don’t like hearing about her because she plays with a smaller ball. What’s the second thing that you don’t like?
I do have a second question for you. If you’re tired of hearing one (or perhaps two) things about Clark, why did you start a thread about her? It’s like a vegan starting a thread asking for steak recipes.
I can’t believe anyone gives a crap about this - honestly. It’s a game.
IMO, as I rank all the distasteful things in the world....sports world specifically, CC doesn't come to mind. 24 hour media sports coverage requires copy. Lots of stuff is over exposed and hyped. This young lady is a pretty good role model.
I understand the smaller ball because women do have smaller hands. Agree 100% about Swift but instead of Kelse I would insert Mahomes.
Maybe the Steelers can get a smaller football for Kenny Pickett!So give caitlin clark some big balls and see if she can score.
There is an easy solution to your problem, just don’t watch ESPN or whatever media is talking about her. I gave up on ESPN years ago and while I’ve heard about her I know very little. Out in the ‘real world’ or at least my real world nobody cares about Caitlin Clark…or women’s basketball.
Very true about women's basketball. A decent high school boys' team would beat Iowa or any WNBA team by 30 points. Clark might not get off a shot if covered by an athletic male small forward. That said, I find it fun to watch Clark play. She is someone who has taken her natural skills to the max level possible. That is admirable.
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I don't understand the angst here; how is this different from weight classes in wrestling? Is the top performer at 149 any less impressive than the top wrestler at 225? The point is how good are they relative to their competition. Whining about this screams insecurity.
Just a point of clarification on ball size - Quick Google search --
the NCAA went with a smaller ball (by 1" circumference) in 1984. So, it's been 40 years, but not quite for the entirety of NCAA women's basketball. Other leagues made the change later - FIBA in 2004. I believe the WNBA has always used the smaller ball.
As most here know, women's teams generally have about 5 men on their practice squads to give them more height and athleticism to practice against. Of course, those guys are not D1 scholarship worthy, but likely came from fairly strong bball backgrounds and are very useful and competitive without needing a ton of individual coaching. So, it's not as though CC or others never go against men. It would be interesting to know how she does in those in-house scrimmages.
Imo, anyone being honest realizes that men are generally going to win vs women in both individual and team sports, especially as physical maturity and the level of competition increase (and before the inevitable decline due to age). There will always be one-offs here and there. I don't know that I agree with the notion that any decent HS boys team would beat a WNBA team. I think it would take more than just any ol' decent HS boys team, but rather an exceptional one, and still maybe not every time, but I'm also guessing that some of those hypothetical games might be pretty interesting to watch. Using the bigger ball in those games... advantage men.
This argument is an example of why I really don't buy into the comparisons that we as sports fans like to (love to? insist on?) make all the time. Who's the best this or that team or coach?... who is better, Jimmy or Joe?... These are just opinions for the most part anyway, and even statistical comparisons can be blurred by factors outside of simply the individual stats. And while I like to think my opinion matters most of all, most (well, many. ok, some.) opinions are just as valid as the next.
I prefer to simply enjoy each as I watch them perform and excel, and try to imagine what drives them and how hard they have to work beyond their natural talents. For example, I grew up loving the Baltimore Colts, so I was all in on Johnny Unitas over Bart Starr as a young kid. Anyone who disagreed with 8-to18 year old me was just dumb and didn't understand football. I still get a thrill watching old Colts videos, but I no longer care if one QB or whatever was better than the other. It was just a grand and glorious sport to me back then. Benefit of age and a pinch of wisdom, I prefer to celebrate them all. And that goes for Caitlyn Clark as well.
the NCAA went with a smaller ball (by 1" circumference) in 1984. So, it's been 40 years, but not quite for the entirety of NCAA women's basketball. Other leagues made the change later - FIBA in 2004. I believe the WNBA has always used the smaller ball.
As most here know, women's teams generally have about 5 men on their practice squads to give them more height and athleticism to practice against. Of course, those guys are not D1 scholarship worthy, but likely came from fairly strong bball backgrounds and are very useful and competitive without needing a ton of individual coaching. So, it's not as though CC or others never go against men. It would be interesting to know how she does in those in-house scrimmages.
Imo, anyone being honest realizes that men are generally going to win vs women in both individual and team sports, especially as physical maturity and the level of competition increase (and before the inevitable decline due to age). There will always be one-offs here and there. I don't know that I agree with the notion that any decent HS boys team would beat a WNBA team. I think it would take more than just any ol' decent HS boys team, but rather an exceptional one, and still maybe not every time, but I'm also guessing that some of those hypothetical games might be pretty interesting to watch. Using the bigger ball in those games... advantage men.
This argument is an example of why I really don't buy into the comparisons that we as sports fans like to (love to? insist on?) make all the time. Who's the best this or that team or coach?... who is better, Jimmy or Joe?... These are just opinions for the most part anyway, and even statistical comparisons can be blurred by factors outside of simply the individual stats. And while I like to think my opinion matters most of all, most (well, many. ok, some.) opinions are just as valid as the next.
I prefer to simply enjoy each as I watch them perform and excel, and try to imagine what drives them and how hard they have to work beyond their natural talents. For example, I grew up loving the Baltimore Colts, so I was all in on Johnny Unitas over Bart Starr as a young kid. Anyone who disagreed with 8-to18 year old me was just dumb and didn't understand football. I still get a thrill watching old Colts videos, but I no longer care if one QB or whatever was better than the other. It was just a grand and glorious sport to me back then. Benefit of age and a pinch of wisdom, I prefer to celebrate them all. And that goes for Caitlyn Clark as well.
ESPiN has been dead to me for years now. As well as every other sports and news media outlet. All they do is sensationalize things to get you talking about it to get more clicks. Its all bullshiite!! Everything gets over analyzed and over sensationalized. Sports is entertainment and I enjoy watching competitive games(in any sport) that comes down to the wire. If some media outlet starts bloviating on something and I don't care to watch, I change the channel. I have a brain and can think for myself and don't need to watch some talking heads tell me how I should think about something. Started doing this many many years ago and I am happier in life now. I would suggest others start doing the same. Focus on what you can control and your happiness.
I am happy that Caitlin Clark is getting the attention she is and seeing her in State Farm commercials and other commercials makes me happy to see a female athlete is getting paid. I can only hope we see more female college athletes making NIL $$$ like make athletes are.
I am happy that Caitlin Clark is getting the attention she is and seeing her in State Farm commercials and other commercials makes me happy to see a female athlete is getting paid. I can only hope we see more female college athletes making NIL $$$ like make athletes are.
I don't actually care about this. I was just responding to the fact that someone said she's not being compared to men, just other women. Yet every graphic shows her closing in on Pete.
I enjoy watching her play, and PSU did a decent job against her last week. However the other young lady went off for 40+ pts on 10+ assists from Clark. So she's very well rounded and not just a scorer.
Exactly how does this impact your life? You are being tied down and cannot change a channel? Thank goodness you let us know how much this touches you....now time to go start some Clark, Swift, and Kelce threads.....LOL.
With heavier balls you don’t need to use as much force. Women hate that!
Maybe they should just deflate the balls a little bit for him. No one would know.
Well get ready to deal with the "hoopla" for another year. She still has one more year of eligibility and with NIL she'll most likely make more money by playing in college than going to the WNBA.
I think it's great for the sport and it looks like other people agree.
It's doubtful that she'd make more money playing in college than in the WNBA...the question is just if she's making enough that she's willing to forgo her pro aspirations for another year.
A WNBA team gave a player a $40,000 bonus not to play overseas during the off season. It made her the highest paid player in the WNBA at $242,154. As you know, the reason that WNBA players play overseas in the off season is because their average salary is around $113,000 and they want more money as their careers are short like most other sports.
I know she'd get endorsements while in the WNBA but I'd argue that women college basketball is more popular and gives more exposure to players right now. I wouldn't doubt Clark makes $150,000+ from endorsements right now, and plays for packed areas all over the US. The WNBA crowds tend to look like the BJC men's games.
But like you said, maybe she wants to compete against the best. Me? I'd like to see her return and play at BJC next year so I can attend.
It is, but is it sustainable once the personalities exit the scene? At least the NCAA made bank on it while it could (don't know which organization I prefer to see getting fu@ked, ESPN or the NCAA?).This is maybe the best thing to ever happen to women's basketball.
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