The saying “don’t hate the player, hate the game” has some merit, especially in the second half. There is little doubt that the American system is rigged and hateful, historically and often today telling us to return back simply because we’re black.

However, there isn’t any automatic, blanket endorsement of the first segment of this saying. Some “players” are completely reckless in the way they roll, rampaging against their skinfolk and other people. There is not any love here for individuals who lie, steal and kill to attain success while the remainder of us try our greatest to follow the twisted rules.

So I totally agree if former Iowa star Caitlin Clark says he doesn’t hate her.

All she really did was chill the hell out

If you must curse something, let him trigger the system that picks up Clark and hitches a ride at the same time. Now he’s headed to the WNBA, where about 70% of the players are black, but none are larger stars. Clark’s magnetism does moved over to professionals, drawing latest attention to decades-old disparities which can be baked into the American cake but typically downplayed by the mainstream.

For example, as the No. 1 overall pick in the WNBA draft, Clark signed with Indiana for a first-year salary of $76,000. For comparison, last 12 months’s NBA No. 1, San Antonio’s Victor Wembanyama, signed for $12.2 million in his rookie season. This discrepancy sparked rebukes from all sides, including White House, NFL quarterback and NBC”Today” to point out.

Funny enough, I do not recall similar outrage when Black players like Aliyah Boston (Indiana) and Rhyne Howard (Atlanta) were chosen first in the 2023 and 2022 drafts. I believe the pay was OK for them, but not for Clark.

But it is not Clark’s fault that nobody raised this issue sooner, and she’s actually not guilty for the imbalance.

– reports the Pew Research Center that the country’s gender pay gap has remained relatively stable over the past 20 years, with women earning on average 82% of what men earn. And that is still ahead of us add race to the equation with black employees – surprise! — still earn lower than their white counterparts.

Sports

Black female WNBA players don’t face the same disparities that black women face in corporate America, where sisters are routinely paid less for doing the same work as others. WNBA earnings are approx agreed collectively and Clark earns not more than the No. 2-4 picks in the draft, Cameron Brink, Kamilla Cardosa and Rickea Jackson.

But critics point to the sport’s growing popularity – Clark played in 4 of the most-watched women’s college basketball games of all time, while the WNBA is currently having fun with its most-watched season in greater than a decade – and then make an intellectually dishonest argument. They complain about “equal pay” in comparison with men’s basketball.

Please be real. This appears like a fantastic idea until you have a look at the numbers and realize that the NBA brings in about $10 billion a 12 months. only a shadow above $200 million WNBA. At least 12 NBA players have valid contracts greater than WNBA annual income. Women need way more financial support to reap the same financial advantages.

The second bone of contention with Clark’s quick emergence is the nature of capitalism and commercialism, the old two-step free market approach that favors vivid, if not rattling white.

Companies have anointed Clark “The Face,” and those making direct deposits into her account include State Farm, Gatorade, Buick and H&R Block. This doesn’t apply to Nike, which is supposedly giving to her distinctive shoe as a part of an eight-year, $28 million deal. In a league that’s 70% black, she becomes the fourth straight white player to win a Nike signature shoe.

Meanwhile, two-time WNBA champion and reigning Finals MVP A’ja Wilson doesn’t have the boot despite her long influence. Of course we’ll cape for Wilson, but that doesn’t suggest Clark is unworthy. She has clearly modified the rules of the game and only fools deny it.

I understand if you instinctively feel that Clark occupies a outstanding place in a mostly black space. But we don’t need to fall back on our side of the divide and say some silly nonsense, as Dennis Rodman said in 1987, saying that Larry Bird could be considered average if he was black.

Two things may be true at the same time. There are white players who get more hype and publicity due to their pigment. There are also white players who can play with cream. Don’t compare the former to the latter.

I’m not mad at Clark. I all the time give attention to the systemic barriers and obstacles standing in our way. They mostly disappear during sporting events, which is one in every of the best things about sports. Clark takes aim at any player who plans to make use of her brilliance to their advantage.

It’s okay to “hate” an athlete when the motion starts and you’re rooting for his or her opponent. Just like you can root for an athlete who just isn’t a fan favorite. Dramas love an excellent villain. Just remember to direct your real anger at the creators of the rules, not the entities that put up with them like everyone else.

Hate this game if you need to. I like Clark.