Monica McNutt appeared on the latest episode of First Take with Stephen A. Smith.
According to Vibe, they debated the incident around Indiana Fever’s Caitlin Clark and Chicago Sky’s Chennedy Carter.
During the incident, Carter fouled Clark and subsequently got a flagrant-1 violation.
Monica McNutt And Stephen A. Smith Were Discussing The Incident
Stephen A. Smith: “Who talks about the WNBA, who talks about women, who talks about women’s sports more than First Take?”
Monica McNutt: “Stephen A., respectfully, with your platform, you could have been doing this three years ago if you wanted to.”
Stephen A.: “Wow.” pic.twitter.com/szQXOPQ3h4
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) June 3, 2024
Stephen A. Smith and McNutt discussed the incident and how Clark’s presence might be causing jealousy across the WNBA.
Smith insisted that women from around the league were intentionally targeting Clark, which was wrong because Clark was elevating the league to new heights of popularity.
Smith then insisted that the WNBA players focus on “maximizing great potential” instead of beefing with Clark.
“Because we bring that up and what might potentially get in their way—which we do to men all the time—now we got to sit up here and watch every syllable. I resent that.”
But Monica McNutt wasn’t having it.
She countered that using a blanket statement to criticize all WNBA players was unfair.
“We’re still talking about competition, where you are allowed to get a little extra elbow in if you are competing and you do it in the parameters of the game. The game is physical; Caitlin is helping to grow the league; these women understand that, but she cannot be babied as a rookie!”
McNutt compared Smith’s struggles to the hardships Black women face when trying to please everyone.
Later, Smith asked McNutt if any other platform was discussing the WNBA more than First Take.
Monica McNutt’s clapback was:
“Respectfully, with your platform, you could have been doing this three years ago if you wanted to.”
Smith’s response was a single word:
“Wow.”
