Sheila Johnson, co-owner of the WNBA’s Washington Mystics, sparked criticism on Friday after she told CNN that Time magazine could’ve put the “whole” league on its cover instead of Indiana Fever star Caitlin Clark.
Johnson, America’s first Black woman billionaire and co-founder of BET, suggested that Time could’ve named the WNBA as its “League of the Year” due to “all the talent” instead of putting Clark on the “Athlete of the Year” cover.
“Because when you just keep singling out one player, it creates hard feelings and so now you’re starting to hear stories of racism within the WNBA and I don’t want to hear that,” Johnson told CNN’s Amanda Davies.
She continued, “We have got to operate and become stronger as a league and respect everybody that’s playing and their talents.”
Clark, who won the WNBA Rookie of Year Award in October, was one of a number of new players including Angel Reese, Cameron Brink,
and Rickea Jackson who joined the league as it experienced a massive jump in viewership and attendance this past season.
Clark’s impact on the WNBA has sparked intense debate on the role of race in a predominantly Black league with several standout moments in its history where players have become known for speaking out against racial inequality and advocating for LGBTQ rights.
Clark, in her Time magazine cover story, recognized the role that race plays in her success.
“I want to say I’ve earned every single thing, but as a white person, there is privilege,” she said. “A lot of those players in the league that have been really good have been Black players. This league has kind of been built on them.”
“The more we can appreciate that, highlight that, talk about that, and then continue to have brands and companies invest in those players that have made this league incredible, I think it’s very important,” she continued. “I have to continue to try to change that.”
“The more we can elevate Black women, that’s going to be a beautiful thing.”
Johnson, when asked on CNN about Clark celebrating the WNBA’s Black players, applauded the Indiana Fever star’s comments.
The Mystics co-owner’s remarks about the cover garnered backlash from the sports world.
Women’s tennis legend Chris Evert, in a reply on X, wrote that Clark “deserves this award because of her talent and contributions both on and off the court.”
USA Today columnist Christine Brennan, whose book about Clark titled “On Her Game” is set to come out in July, dropped by CNN on Friday where she also questioned Johnson’s take.
She noted that the Mystics had to move their games against the Fever to a larger arena to accommodate because of Clark, who attracted the biggest single-game crowd in WNBA history for Indiana’s game against Washington back in September.
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“I understand the issues she’s getting at,” Brennan told CNN’s Laura Coates. “But why she chose that, when Caitlin has these great answers in the Time magazine piece… Caitlin has been nothing but great on this issue of the Black women who have made the WNBA what it is.”
ESPN analyst Elle Duncan took to X on Saturday to declare that Clark “deserved” the title from Time and it “automatically amplifies the league.”
“To suggest she’s being put on an unfair pedestal because she’s being recognized for a truly uncommon and transformational year is absurd,” she wrote.
