Former ESPN host Linda Cohn’s hot take on A’ja Wilson’s absence from the USA squad, in which she called Wilson “insecure” about Caitlin Clark and being overshadowed by her popularity, has received quite the criticism from a section of fans and media. Joining in this line of critics is Hall of Famer Sheryl Swoopes, who has called Cohn out for making such a “nonsense” comparison.

“Listen, Linda. I’m not upset with you having your favorite player. Cool,” said Swoops on her “Levels to This” Podcast. “But what we’re not going to do is go on social media, go on TV, go wherever you’re going with this nonsense, and call out somebody who is the best player in the world right now, in A’ja Wilson.

“To say she’s insecure about what? She’s a freaking four-time WNBA MVP, possibly five times.”

This debate on A’ja Wilson has raged on ever since Cohn’s posted her clip on September 4, just when the FIBA World Cup was starting.

“So is there any part of A’ja that didn’t want to spend the next couple of weeks watching the World Cup become the Caitlin Clark Show?” Cohn said in the video on X. “Because let’s face it: Caitlin walks into a building, and the attention follows her… Could A’ja simply not want to deal with that? Could there be some insecurity, dare I say?”

The clip uploaded by Cohn quickly went viral, amassing over a million views in just a couple of days.

The catalyst for Cohn’s comments was when Team USA suddenly announced just before the World Cup that A’ja Wilson and Kelsey Plum would not be part of the USA squad. While Plum released a statement regarding this omission and cited her troubles with injuries, there was little clarity as to the reasons for Wilson’s omission from the team.

While reports at the time, including one by ESPN’s Alexa Philippou, indicated that Wilson’s omission was due to a back issue, speculation remained high, especially considering Wilson was putting up numbers in August, scoring 27 points each in her last two WNBA games before the World Cup.

Over 40 games, Wilson is averaging 26.0 points, 9.4 rebounds, and 3.2 assists per game, leading the league in points.

While Team USA has made the Final of the World Cup, analysts at that time were quick to point out that missing a player of A’ja Wilson’s calibre could potentially leave the US squad in trouble, considering that such a debacle has indeed happened in the past, in 2006, when Lisa Leslie did not participate for Team USA in the tournament, and in the semifinal against Russia, the US lost.

This time, however, the critics’ claims have been unfounded as the USA takes on France in the title decider after reaching the final unbeaten.

And not just Sheryl Swoopes, the conversation about A’ja Wilson and her omission from the World Cup has drawn the ire of Las Vegas Aces head coach Becky Hammon, who has given her strong take on this whole issue.

“A’ja has every right to do what she feels is best, health-wise. 
And the other thing is, the men do this all the time,” Hammon told USA TODAY’s Callie Fin. “Can you name me any of the men’s world championship rosters right now? Can you name me any person on there? What I’m saying is, LeBron [James] and those guys—if this was a man making this decision, there would be nothing to say. And that’s my problem.”

For now, fans will hope that Clark and Co. are at their best when they take on a France team that has been in red-hot form so far in this tournament. France’s shooting has been in line with what fans are accustomed to seeing from Clark in the WNBA, so all signs point to this being a tight game.