Stephen A. Smith has been effusive in his praise of Dawn Staley and Caitlin Clark. You can say what you want about the First Take host—and Monica McNutt sure has—but he’s given his voice to women’s basketball this past year. Whether it’s given it any credence, though, is up for debate.
Smith has been pretty steadfast in his belief that Clark should’ve been at the 2024 Paris Olympics. He slammed Team USA for ignoring marketing in what he lamented as a “dumb” snub.
But while the discourse had been put to bed for the time being, it came back up like the Undertaker after Mike Tirico asked Staley, who is a member of the USWNT selection committee, about Clark. Staley said, “If we had to do it all over again, the way that she’s playing, she would be in really high consideration of making the team because she is playing head and shoulders above a lot of people.”
Smith triumphantly pointed to Team USA’s attendance and ratings, wearing a smug expression as he implied everyone, including the team, should have followed his advice.
“How does it feel, Team USA? To have six games — four of them drew over 20,000 — and the one that didn’t still drew 2,000 more than you,” said Smith. “That means… that outside of that, the other games drew more than 6,000 fans compared to you. How does it feel? See, we want to play like marketing and business don’t play a role in all of us. Have you ever been to the Olympics? Do you know that they’ll remove you from events if they have a sponsorship from Coca-Cola and you drink Pepsi?
“I would know. I’ve been to two of them. I covered the Olympics in Sydney, Australia in 2000. I covered it in Athens, Greece, in 2004. I would know. I haven’t been back since, don’t want to go back. I can’t stand the Olympics. I’m not talking about the games; I’m not talking about the competition; I’m talking about the way the Olympics treat people, particularly the media. I can’t stand it. You have no rights. Everything is so restrictive. Because you’re doing business with everybody, and you’re milking every penny for all its worth, every chance you get.
“Well, guess what, ladies and gentlemen? That’s why you should’ve had Caitlin Clark, and Angel Reese, because they’re a draw. I never once said that Caitlin Clark should’ve been on the team ahead of the 12 people selected ahead of her because of basketball. I said, ‘Marketing matters in everything. Promotion matters in everything. And you’re not gonna get around that.’ That is what I said. And you go over to Paris, and…Team USA draws the lowest attendance.
“How does it feel? Do you care? ‘Merits. Merits. Merits.’ Last time I checked, marketing and promotion is merits, because people want to get paid. You think you’re over there just to compete for Team USA and just to engage in patriotism? People are over there, also, to build their brands, to elevate their profile, so they can turn that into a marketable tool that could generate dollars for their [inaudible]. We ain’t fooling anybody here. That’s what goes on. And it was the perfect opportunity for Team USA to do just that, but you didn’t do it.”
Smith didn’t spare Dawn Staley from his criticism despite praising her earlier.
“The great Dawn Staley, who I revere by the way, ‘If she was playing the way then the way she’s playing now…’ Well, wait a minute,” continued Smith. “You know she had the potential. You know, playing amongst other stars with her marksmanship, she could’ve made things happen. With her passing ability, she could’ve made things happen. Then, she would’ve drawn excitement and eyeballs, and people all over the world would’ve been watching here, which would have assisted in the elevation of the WNBA brand, which would’ve benefitted everybody!!!!
“But, you didn’t care. Far be it for you to pay all attention to that. And now Team USA is on the docket, drawing the lowest attendance of anybody in the Olympics… That’s embarrassing. Really? Really? Y’all something else, man. Told y’all. Caitlin Clark would’ve damn sure been on that team, and the more I saw Angel Reese playing the way she was playing, and the way her and Caitlin feed off of one another from a ratings standpoint, she would’ve been on the team too.”
About Sam Neumann
Since the beginning of 2023, Sam has been a staff writer for Awful Announcing and The Comeback. A 2021 graduate of Temple University, Sam is a Charlotte native, who currently calls Greenville, South Carolina his home. He also has a love/hate relationship with the New York Mets and Jets.