In a stunning turn of events, the universe has confirmed what basketball fans have long suspected: Geno Auriemma is not, in fact, omniscient. The UConn head coach, revered by many and feared by more, has found himself in the proverbial hot seat for some comments that have aged about as well as milk left out on a summer day.
Let’s rewind the tape to June, when Auriemma, the oracle of UConn, confidently declared that fans were “delusional” if they thought Caitlin Clark would dominate the WNBA straight out of college. Fast forward to today, and it seems that “delusional” is now trending as the favorite word of the year—if by delusional, you mean wildly accurate.
After lighting up the college scene like the Fourth of July, Clark has sashayed into the WNBA and proceeded to make defenders look like extras in her highlight reel. As Clark continues to shred through defenses like a hot knife through butter, Auriemma’s comments have resurfaced, and fans are having an absolute field day.
One particularly gleeful Twitter user quipped, “Geno looks foolish now. ‘Caitlin is not good enough to be in the WNBA.’ PURE FOOLISHness!!!!!” Another fan chimed in, “Wow, it’s like the opposite of everything he said,” while a third summed it up with, “That didn’t age well…” No kidding, Sherlock.
For those unacquainted with Auriemma’s illustrious history, he’s been the head honcho at UConn since 1985, racking up a casual 1,213 wins, 162 losses, and 11 championships. And yet, even the best occasionally have a swing and a miss. This one, however, was less of a miss and more of a faceplant.
It gets better—apparently, Clark had UConn on her wish list coming out of high school. But in a plot twist worthy of a daytime soap opera, Auriemma passed on recruiting her, opting to go all-in on Paige Bueckers instead. His reasoning? It didn’t make sense to have both Clark and Bueckers in the same backcourt.
In hindsight, that decision might fall under the “Oops” category. But don’t worry, Geno’s got an explanation. “Well, there’s a lot of kids we didn’t recruit, and there’s a lot of kids who don’t want to go to UConn,” he shrugged in a recent interview. Ah yes, the old “it’s not you, it’s me” routine.
Despite not landing at her dream school, Caitlin Clark seems to be doing just fine. She’s racked up more records than a vintage vinyl shop and is now one of the brightest young stars in the WNBA. As for Auriemma, well, let’s just say his predictions might need a bit more… seasoning.
In the end, Geno Auriemma is still a legend, but even legends have off days. And in this case, Caitlin Clark’s success is the best kind of revenge—a dish served cold, with a side of sarcasm.