"Why does she have to struggle?": Chad Johnson defends $3.4M NIL-valued Caitlin Clark amid criticism from 3x WNBA champ Diana Taurasi
Former NFL wide receiver Chad Johnson came to the defense of Caitlin Clark, who received some not-so-encouraging words from three-time WNBA champ Diana Taurasi.
"(Taurasi) wasn't saying Clark wouldn't succeed on the professional level, but rather suggested the future rookie could struggle making the transition," Johnson said on Shannon Sharpe's "Nightcap." "Why does she have to struggle? You don`t think she might be OK based on the situation, based on the team she goes to?
"I'm just saying (that) to watch what she did in college, I would be very hesitant to make these types of comments. Again, this is someone that has played the game, this is someone that's very experienced, someone that's very, very good at the game. So, she has the right to do it."
Phoenix Mercury star Diana Taurasi said on "SportsCenter" on Friday that while the Iowa star, who has an NIL valuation of $3.4 million (according to On3), looked "superhuman" against players her age, it will be different in the pros where she'll be playing grown women who have been playing professional basketball for a long time.
The WNBA's all-time leading scorer also had three simple words for the soon-to-be No. 1 pick: "Reality is coming." Widely regarded as one of the best players in women's basketball history, Taurasi's opinions carry a lot of weight even if some might disagree.
Caitlin Clark is expected to be picked by the Indiana Fever, and she is due to be one of the most hyped women's hoops prospects in a long time. She's heading into the pros as the NCAA basketball all-time leading scorer, so there's a ton of pressure for her to perform at the highest level.
Diana Taurasi's apparent beef with Caitlin Clark
Before Diana Taurasi's postgame comments on Caitlin Clark, she made the same kind of criticism toward the young basketball star earlier Friday evening.
During a simulcast with fellow UConn great Sue Bird on Friday, the WNBA legend was asked whether their former coach, Geno Auriemma, would let Clark shoot her patented logo 3-pointers. Taurasi`s reaction was a simple and loud "Hell, no!" adding that it's not how Auriemma "teaches basketball."
Also, when asked whom she'd take as the No. 1 pick, she picked her fellow Husky Paige Bueckers without batting an eye. There's a potential bias given their school ties, but that's a story for another day. (Bueckers has said she will return to UConn next season.)
Either way, the apparent beef between Caitlin Clark and Diana Taurasi is due to come to a head in the WNBA, and the Phoenix Mercury are already buying in on it. To market their single-game tickets against the Indiana Fever this season, the Mercury tweeted this graphic featuring Taurasi, as the GOAT, against Clark, called The Rook: