Mike Vorel: Caitlin Clark-Angel Reese rivalry is complicated but good for WNBA

Let's talk about the flagrant foul. Or, instead: Let's talk about why we're talking about the flagrant foul. With 4:38 left in the third quarter of the Indiana Fever's season-opening 93-58 win on May 17, Chicago Sky forward Angel Reese shoved Fever forward Natasha Howard in the back, which allowed Reese to wrangle an offensive rebound. Fever guard Caitlin Clark — perhaps the most popular player in sports — pointed out the missed call, then wrapped her arms around Reese to prevent an uncontested layup. If you've watched ESPN, scrolled through the reactionary minefield on social media or stumbled upon an internet connection of any kind, you know what happened next. Reese crumbled to the court, then stood and beelined toward Clark as Fever center Aliyah Boston forcefully held her back. While Clark raised her hands and retreated toward her bench, Reese untucked her jersey, pointed her finger and talked to two assistant coaches. All of the above is good for business, though the WNBA would prefer to expunge the parts it can't control. Clark was called for a Flagrant 1 foul — which, per the WNBA rule book, is assessed when contact "is interpreted to be unnecessary" — and Reese and Boston were dealt dual technical fouls. It was a foul. A hard foul. A smart foul, given that Reese missed one of her two free throws. It was also, in a league with a more physical brand of play than the NBA, unexceptional. "Either Angel gets a wide-open two points or we send them to the free-throw line. Nothing malicious about it," Clark told ESPN sideline reporter Holly Rowe. "It's just a good take foul. Every basketball player knows that." Added Reese, echoing a similar sentiment: "Basketball play. Refs got it right. Move on." So, there it is: an open and shut case. There were two other flagrant fouls in the WNBA last weekend that nobody talked about. But why can't we move on? Because, given the context, this was more than a controversial call. It started on April 2, 2023, when Reese's LSU Tigers bested Clark's Iowa Hawkeyes in the NCAA Tournament championship game. Near the end of LSU's 102-85 win, Reese taunted Clark by waving her hand in front of her face and pointing to her ring finger. Clark and Co. bounded back the following season, expelling LSU from the tournament with a 94-87 Elite Eight win. That competitive friction followed both to the WNBA. On June 1, 2024, Sky guard Chennedy Carter earned a Flagrant 1 for hip-checking Clark to the court — earning applause from Reese, who stood and clapped as Clark was helped to her feet. All the while, we watched. The season opener, flagrant foul included, averaged 2.7 million viewers on ABC, becoming the WNBA's most-watched regular-season game in 25 years. The league also attracted more than 54 million unique viewers in 2024, a record. The most-watched games ever on ESPN, ESPN2, CBS and NBA TV all occurred last season … and all involved Clark. What's more, the WNBA enjoyed its best attendance in 22 years and a 48% increase from 2023. Three games exceeded 20,000 fans — and again, not coincidentally, all three involved Clark. The Fever's home attendance of 340,715 was a season record and even outdrew the per-game average of the NBA's Indiana Pacers, who meet the New York Knicks in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference finals on Wednesday. Clark — the greatest scorer college basketball has ever seen — was the dominant reason for that eruption. The 23-year-old from Des Moines, Iowa, has graduated from exceptional athlete to cultural phenomenon, introducing a sport to a wider audience like Tiger Woods once did with golf. The WNBA, and the entirety of women's basketball, benefits from the bump. Still, rivalries — heroes and villains and storylines, all subjective — build both leagues and legends. The rivalry between Clark and Reese has played a part as well. "Look where women's basketball is. People are talking about women's basketball that you never would think would be talking about women's basketball," Reese said last summer. "People are pulling up to games. We got celebrities coming to games, sold-out arenas, just because of one single game (the 2023 national championship game). "And just looking at that, I'll take that role. I'll take the bad guy role, and I'll continue to take that on and be that for my teammates. And if I want to be that and I know I'll go down in history. I'll look back in 20 years and be like, 'Yeah, the reason why we watching women's basketball is not just because of one person.' It's because of me too, and I want you all to realize that." We're watching, one, because Clark and Reese both have game to match the melodrama. If they couldn't play, it wouldn't matter, though Clark (19.2 points, 8.4 assists, 5.7 rebounds per game) was WNBA Rookie of the Year and Reese (13.6 PPG, 13.1 RPG) was runner-up. But let's not be naive to the cultural context accompanying the rivalry — a charged political climate, a racial dynamic in which an anointed white player is credited with lifting a majority Black league, a social media landscape where anyone with Wi-Fi is afforded a microphone. Add the ingredients, and to some it becomes more than a flagrant foul or a boastful ring finger. Which may be why the WNBA investigated allegations of "hateful fan comments" directed at Reese during the game at Indiana. "The WNBA strongly condemns racism, hate, and discrimination in all forms — they have no place in our league or in society," the WNBA said in a statement. "We are aware of the allegations and are looking into the matter." The WNBA should absolutely investigate and do whatever possible to promote a safe and positive workplace for all of its players. But this rivalry — not hate or racism, but this rivalry — is good for the game. Clark and Reese don't have to like each other for it to be good for the game. The associated fan bases don't have to like each other, either. Quite the contrary, a healthy animosity is evidence of emotional investment, though there is a line that cannot be crossed. Rivalry — not hate or racism, but rivalry — is what we love about sports. It's Seahawks-49ers, Mariners-Astros, Sounders-Timbers, Huskies-Ducks, the longstanding scars and stories that make us really care. The foul itself was unexceptional. The rivalry it's part of, though imperfect in its impact, is ultimately beneficial to women's basketball.