Caitlin Clark’ $150M Offer & Shaquille Doesn’t Hater Her Anymore

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Shaquille Hated Caitlin

Lakers legend Shaquille O’Neal has admitted that he was once a hater of Indiana Fever Rookie of the Year Caitlin Clark, citing his support of Chicago Sky’s Angel Reese.

Speaking with long-time Clark rival Angel Reese – who plays for Chicago Sky – on her Unapologetically Angel podcast, O’Neal explained: “I was a hater because you know I’m down with you.

“I was like, she’s not going to hit that shot, and bam. But, if I say ten times that you’re going to hit the shot and you hit the shot, that means you’re the truth.” Elsewhere in the conversation, O’Neal compared Clark to NBA great Steph Curry, who is able to shoot threes from anywhere on the court despite being smaller in stature.

He explained: “Steph Curry, a little kid. Like Steph Curry, I love. You know why I love Steph Curry? Because I’ve never seen that before. I’ve never seen that before. I’ve seen it a little bit in Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf, but I’ve never seen a guy consistently.

“And if you saw Steph on the street, he ain’t got the LeBron muscles, he’s not 6’9, he’s not 6’10. He looks like a perfectly normal office guy. He’s doing stuff that people have never seen before. She’s doing stuff we’ve never seen before.

Unrivaled Wants Her Off-Season & They Pay Well

A new startup women’s basketball league, Unrivaled, is set to launch, led by current WNBA players Breanna Stewart and Napheesa Collier.

The biggest difference between this new league and the WNBA is Unrivaled would feature a 3-on-3 format rather than 5-on-5. That means a greater emphasis on a smaller number of players. Unrivaled will only have 30 players in its first season.

Unrivaled will feature 30 of the best in women’s basketball, with stars like Brittney Griner and Kahleah Copper already signing with the upstart group.

According to Front Office Sports, Unrivaled is now putting on the ‘full-court press’ to have Clark take one of the four open spots in the league.

Reese has already agreed to join the fun, announcing her intention to play in Unrivaled back in July. She became the 10th player to join the league, alongside Stewart, Collier, Chelsea Gray, Arike Ogunbowale, Jewell Loyd, Kelsey Plum, Rhyne Howard, Kahleah Copper, and Jackie Young.

Now, the league is also aggressively pushing to bring on Clark.

Raaaacist
Reese has previously accused Caitlin Clark fans of being racist. Reese has played very aggressively against Caitlin, as do her own teammates. One gouged Caitlin’s eye with her long nails. Some say it’s racism, and others say jealousy. Others say it because she’s not a lesbian. Who knows?

Caitlin Clark responded to that accusation.

“Nobody in our league should be facing any sort of racism, hurtful, disrespectful, hateful comments and threats. You know, those aren’t fans. Those are trolls. It’s a real disservice to the people in our league, the organization, the WNBA. But there are a lot of really good fans, whether they’ve been fans for 20+ years or whether they’re new fans in our league.

I think continuing to uplift this league in a very positive light is the best thing that we can do because there are so many great players. There’s so many great teams. There are so many positive storylines that can be written and celebrated, and for me, that’s why I became a fan of this league.”

Sources tell Front Office Sports that the new Unrivaled women’s basketball league is considering a sweeping “Lionel Messi–like” offer to entice Caitlin Clark to play in the league’s inaugural season.

Not Just Money: Equity and Revenue-Sharing

The start-up league’s “full-court press” to recruit Clark is similar to the push by Major League Soccer’s Inter Miami CF to woo Messi in 2023. The club knew that salary alone was not enough to land the global superstar. So Inter Miami constructed an unprecedented package that included a contract valued at $150 million, partial ownership, and other financial incentives. Apple even agreed to share revenue from MLS Season Pass with the seven-time Ballon d’Or winner.

According to FOS, Clark could be offered more than $1 million for less than three months’ work and equity and revenue-sharing incentives.

Clark was just named the fourth-most-marketable athlete in the world by SportsPro in London. (Messi ranks behind her at No. 5.) With her stardom and broad appeal in mind, the start-up league is poised to offer Clark everything from a salary possibly exceeding $1 million for less than three months of work to equity and revenue-sharing, sources say.

Similar to the “Messi Effect” on MLS, Unrivaled hopes a “Caitlin Clark Effect” would drive ticket sales and ratings for TV partner TNT Sports while attracting blue-chip advertisers.
Given Clark’s significant profile and her role in attracting more spectators to the already thriving WNBA, a similar effect could have been expected for the three-on-three league.

But She Wants to Golf.

However, the 22-year-old might reject the opportunity to play in the league – and the chance to team up with rookie sensation and rival Angel Reese in the competition – to follow another passion: Golf.

As soon as the Fever’s WNBA season concluded, she expressed her wish to take a break after a lengthy period, which saw her transition almost immediately from her standout final college season into the WNBA. “I’m gonna play some golf,” she announced.

However, while she is getting golf lessons in her off-season, she said her first love is basketball.

There’s That Million Dollar Payday.

A million-dollar payday may not sound like much compared to NBA superstars like LeBron James, who’ll make $48.7 million with the Lakers this season. But it would be a fortune compared to Clark’s base salary of $76,535 during her rookie season with the Indiana Fever. Not counting incentives, she’ll make only $338,056 during her first four seasons, according to Spotrac.

Clark’s real income comes off the court. Among other deals, she has an eight-year, $28 million contract with Nike. Since her college days with the Iowa Hawkeyes, she’s built an impressive portfolio of corporate sponsors, including the Swoosh, State Farm, Gatorade, Wilson, Bose, Buick, and other brands. Clark is represented by Excel Sports Management, which also reps Derek Jeter as well as Peyton and Eli Manning (Excel declined to comment for this story).

Clark could easily spend her off-season training, playing golf, and shooting TV commercials. But Unrivaled hopes the combination of a high salary, a stake in the league (all players will receive equity opportunities), and the challenge of hooping against the world’s top female players will entice the 22-year-old point guard.

According to Mike Gunzelman at Outkick, Honestly, Caitlin Clark Needs to Do This.

“She has to commit to play in Unrivaled – not only for the financial incentives, but because it gives her another opportunity to shut down her haters and continue to come out on top. Reese and the like of those that spent this season fouling and ripping Clark for her popularity would be furious if Clark plays in the same tournament as them. Clark should 100% rain on their parade and show up.”

“Hell, if Clark is going to be stereotyped as a villain by some players within the league, then she might as well get paid for it and be a legitimate disruptor. I need Caitlin Clark to show up wherever and whenever to play ball and just continue to shove it in their face by letting her play (and her record paycheck) doing the talking – whether it’s in Unrivaled or the WNBA.”


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