Both Paige Bueckers and Caitlin Clark were quite spectacular for their respective teams on Sunday, delivering 30-plus-point performances to lead their teams to victory. However, even though Clark seemed to have ended up with the more impressive stat line, delivering 37 points and 10 assists, as opposed to Bueckers’ 32 points, four assists, and four rebounds, ex-ESPN host Cindy Brunson couldn’t have been less impressed with Clark’s performance.
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In fact, following the game, Brunson didn’t waste any time making a thread post to share her thoughts on both players’ performances. And for her, Clark’s 37-point outing was nothing but stat padding, while Bueckers’ output was far more impressive, considering she delivered what she did in just 26 minutes of the game. She did not check back into the fourth quarter at all.
“Miss me with that stat padding 37 points, on the floor up 20 w/ a minute. The 32 points in just 26 minutes was WAY more impressive from the ⭐️ on the playoff team from the Lone Star State,” Brunson wrote, as per a screenshot posted by Indiana Fever fan Ken Swift.
However, Brunson’s post sparked significant backlash from fans, and she had to delete it. However, this isn’t the only instance where social media hasn’t agreed with some analysts on their take regarding Caitlin Clark.
One such example came last week when the Indiana Fever took on the Toronto Tempo in a road game. It was Clark’s first game in Canada, and the Caitlin Clark effect was once again on display as the 19,300-seat Scotiabank Arena sold out.
Yet when ESPN’s on-the-ground reporter Holly Rowe uploaded a video of the bustling, sold-out arena full of fans, she didn’t acknowledge Clark, sparking backlash on social media from the X page Sports Patriot.
“This might perfectly summarize WNBA media coverage. Holly Rowe is crying tears of joy over a packed arena in Toronto… while somehow failing to mention THE WOMAN EVERYBODY CAME TO SEE. Caitlin Clark’s first WNBA game in Canada. Packed house. And still they twist themselves into pretzels rather than simply saying: Thank you, Caitlin.”
In fact, fans have criticized networks like WNBA on ION for even downplaying Clark’s stake in the 2026 MVP race as she continues to break records, like becoming the fastest WNBA player to reach 600 career assists in July.
During their conversation about the top five players in the race at the beginning of this month, ION spoke about Paige Bueckers, Breanna Stewart, Rookie of the Year candidate Oliva Miles, defending MVP A’ja Wilson, and even Clark’s own teammate Kelsey Mitchell.
However, they never mentioned the Fever guard among those most likely to win this year’s MVP honors, sparking immediate backlash from fans on social media.
Since then, Caitlin Clark has only continued to put in highlight perfromances alongside the league’s other top players like Paige Bueckers. So regardless of whether analysts like Brunson agree on Clark’s performances being pivotal for the Fever or not, it’s clear Clark’s fans will defend her.