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Caitlin Clark's Inclusion in Seattle Storm Post Incites Angry Fan Reaction

Caitlin Clark fans are up in arms over their beloved rookie being used as promotional bait in a Seattle Storm social media post.

Grant Young

Indiana Fever guard Caitlin Clark (22) takes a moment after she falls during the second half of a game against the Seattle Storm on Sunday, Aug. 18, 2024, at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis. The Fever defeated the Storm 92-75.
Indiana Fever guard Caitlin Clark (22) takes a moment after she falls during the second half of a game against the Seattle Storm on Sunday, Aug. 18, 2024, at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis. The Fever defeated the Storm 92-75. / Christine Tannous/IndyStar / USA TODAY NETWORK

On Monday evening, the Seattle Storm's X account posted what, at first glance, appeared to be harmless campaigning for center Ezi Magbegor to win the WNBA 2024 Defensive Player of the Year award.

But a closer look shows what looks like clear shade thrown at Indiana Fever rookie Caitlin Clark, as one of the graphics shows a grimacing Clark while Magbegor reaches up and blocks her shot.

While a simple blocked shot on Clark would be fair game for the Storm to include, X user @CClarkReport called attention to the fact that "The picture used in this graphic was from a play where Caitlin Clark was hit on the head with no foul call".

Then there's the fact that the Storm surely chose Clark in the graphic to generate discussion and interest. While that's also fair enough, the picture appears to be AI-generated to make it look like Magbegor's block was cleaner than it really was.

All of these reasons explain why Clark's fervent fanbase is up in arms over the post.

"Using Caitlin as clickbait is beneath you guys.
Ezi doesn’t need this weird graphic. Do better," X user @JCX responded to Seattle's post.

Another X user added, "Using CC for clicks, childish and pathetic."

A third Clark fan responded to the graphic with a picture of Clark pouting and wrote, "You don't want to talk about her but you're creating and using an AI picture of her?"

This last fan reaction seems to be referencing star Storm guard Jewell Loyd dismissing a question about Clark during a postgame press conference after Clark's Fever squad handed the Storm a 92-75 loss on August 18.

There's no question that Magbegor deserves consideration for Defensive Player of the Year. But the Storm's social media team electing to include Clark with their promotional post didn't leave a good taste in the mouths of many WNBA fans.

Published
Grant Young
GRANT YOUNG

Grant Young covers Women’s Basketball, the New York Yankees, and the New York Mets for Sports Illustrated’s ‘On SI’ sites. He holds an MFA degree in creative writing from the University of San Francisco (USF), where he also graduated with a Bachelor’s Degree in Marketing and played on USF’s Division I baseball team for five years. However, he now prefers Angel Reese to Angels in the Outfield.

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