“I’m not really a ‘girl’s girl.'” Not exactly the tagline you’d expect from a basketball legend, but Sheryl Swoopes has never been one to sugarcoat. While Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese are lighting up TikTok and selling out arenas today, Swoopes paved the hardwood paths they now sprint on—albeit with a blunt honesty that could shatter glass backboards.
During a 2022 episode of NETLIFE with Dawn Staley, Swoopes confessed something most wouldn’t dare admit on air: She struggled to get along with her teammates. No, not because of on-court rivalries, but because, well, women.
“Listen,” she began, setting the stage like a seasoned stand-up comedian about to drop a truth bomb. “From as far back as I can remember, I’ve never been one to just kick it with a bunch of women.” Pause for dramatic effect. “We absolutely get moody. At times, we can be petty. We can be jealous. There’s so much that can go wrong.”
Raise your hand if you’ve ever been personally victimized by a brutally honest take like that.
But here’s the kicker: This candor didn’t tank her career; it fueled it. Swoopes embraced the chaos of team dynamics like a point guard with no backup plan. “The fact that we were able to respect each other’s talents and, more importantly, respect each other as women—that’s what made it work,” she explained. “You do you, I’ll do me, but when it’s game time? Nothing else matters.”
You’d think such an alpha attitude might rub teammates the wrong way, but it’s probably what helped her snag three MVP awards and four WNBA championships. Swoopes wasn’t about to let drama bench her.
Swoopes on Caitlin Clark: From Shade to Celebration
Fast-forward to 2024, and Swoopes has traded her “team therapist” hat for one of women’s basketball’s most unfiltered commentators. Case in point: her recent reaction to Caitlin Clark being named TIME Magazine’s Athlete of the Year.
“I’m curious who the other candidates were,” she quipped on Dec. 10 during an appearance on Gila’s Arena. Translation: Was the competition really that fierce, or did Clark just dominate the headlines harder than her defenders?
But credit where it’s due—Swoopes didn’t hold back her admiration. “That’s the very first WNBA player to ever win TIME Magazine Athlete of the Year. It’s pretty special,” she admitted, adding a cheeky rhetorical flourish: “Was it her performance on the court? Or was it more about the impact she had on the game this season?”
Spoiler alert: It’s both. Clark’s buzzer-beaters and swagger lit up social media, boosted viewership, and inspired a new generation of fans. Even Swoopes, with her no-nonsense vibe, had to acknowledge the ripple effect. “It’s great, not just for her. It’s great for the league.”
The Legacy Connection
As much as Swoopes’ frankness makes her a headline goldmine, her impact on the WNBA runs deeper than quips and soundbites. She helped build the foundation for today’s stars—flaws, feuds, and all.
Caitlin Clark may be raking in accolades and reshaping the narrative, but it’s players like Swoopes who broke the mold. They proved that basketball isn’t just a game; it’s a stage, a soap opera, and, occasionally, a battlefield of moods and egos.
So here’s to Sheryl Swoopes: the original straight-shooter, both on the court and off. While she may not be the “kick it with the girls” type, she’s the ultimate teammate where it matters—in legacy and legend.