WNBA Legend Sue Bird Sends Clear Message About Caitlin Clark, Angel Reese Rivalry
Sue Bird knows a thing or two about women's basketball.
The 43-year-old is currently considered one of the best women's basketball players of all time after finishing her esteemed career with four WNBA Championships, five Olympic gold medals, 13 All-Star Game appearances, and will surely earn an induction into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame in the future.
Since becoming a spectator of her beloved sport, the former UConn Husky has been an outspoken advocate for WNBA rookies Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese.
And Bird expanded on her positive sentiment regarding the two icons during an interview with sports journalist Rachel Nichols that was released on YouTube August 12.
"I love it," Bird said when asked about her thoughts of Clark and Reese's rivalry. "I love it. I think basketball and the women's game, we've had rivalries for forever. We've had competitiveness, we've had trash talk, you name it. It just wasn't getting the looks, people weren't covering it.
"So the fact that these two, they literally stole the college stage, both with their play and with their trash talk," Bird continued. "And that they're taking it into the WNBA, it's just going to mean good things for the rest of the landscape of women's basketball. So I'm all for [the rivalry], I think it's great. They've come in and they've taken over."
Bird is alluding to how Reese and Clark's rivalry began by Reese taunting Clark with a gesture toward her ring finger in the final seconds of the 2023 NCAA Championship Game, when Reese's LSU Tigers defeated Clark's Iowa Hawkeyes.
Bird also added that just all the attention Reese and Clark have brought to women's basketball doesn't mean that the job is done.
There's still a ton of growth to be had for the women's game. But if Reese and Clark can keep on their current trajectories, that growth seems assured.
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.