CLAY TRAVIS (HOST): Caitlin Clark. Most people are like, “Okay.” Is she a goat? What do you make of this? How do you analyze Caitlin Clark? First of all, her amazing career. Like I said, congratulations to South Carolina on their undefeated run, but this is really Caitlin Clark's story. And to me, Caitlin Clark is in a unique position. I don't think there's been a team sport athlete who became bigger than the sport they played before turning professional. Let's think about this for a moment. If Caitlin Clark had lost, 65% to 70% of women's college basketball's overall viewership would have disappeared overnight. People say, “Oh, women's college basketball is so strong.” No, Caitlin Clark is a unicorn. She is a meteor across the night sky. People care about Caitlin Clark. They don't particularly care about women's college basketball. Perhaps the best analogy is Ronda Rousey. Just like 10 years ago, everyone has an opinion about Ronda Rousey in the UFC, and the women's UFC continues after Ronda Rousey. who cares. I can't name any female UFC fighters right now. Unless you're an avid UFC fan, you probably won't be able to do that either. Ronda Rousey was a female UFC fighter. As soon as she lost, the sport disappeared. No one really cared. She was larger than the man for a short period of time. I think she lost Holly Holm and then she lost again, but it's basically all over. Her career was all over and the UFC never recovered on the women's side. Other parables. I think you could say she's similar to Tiger Woods in that Tiger brought in a lot of people who weren't interested in golf. She's like Michael Jordan, and I think you could say Michael Jordan brought in a ton of people who weren't interested in the NBA. The difference is that they were both professionals by the time they became very famous.
Caitlin Clark is going to the WNBA. Her brand is bigger and more valuable than the entire WNBA and that's why so many people out there are attacking Caitlin Clark because instead of welcoming her, women's basketball has actually cheated on her. This is the reason why you see it. I think there are different levels here. I don't think the fact that she is straight and white will work in her favor in the women's college basketball world or in her WNBA. Because there are a lot of lesbians and a lot of minorities. I think that is also a factor. Being a straight white woman makes people uncomfortable. I'm talking about the WNBA people. It's strange, but I think so.
Another issue here is how much of her celebrity is reflected in the WNBA. If I were to give her advice, I would say put her on the women's college team. So, I'm sorry, but the girls who are trying to win gold, the American girls. I think that's definitely true. More people will watch it. Another analogy she uses here is like the women's soccer team, and the U.S. women's soccer team had a lot of famous people. I don't know if anyone has ever climbed to the heights that you're looking at Caitlin Clark now. Therefore, there are not many historical reproductions here.
