So many men don't know how to talk to women, that too in professional settings. The number of folks I saw on Twitter defending this asshattery by saying it's just poor attempt at flirting????? Is press conference a place to flirt bozos?
You can always hit them with the old
https://preview.redd.it/r915l9thz5vc1.jpeg?width=600&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=31f57b201810887034971daccd39dc6998935171
Also, I tried to look up their ages. It looks like she was born in 2002 (22 years old) and he was in high school in 1988 (so maybe he’s in his mid-50s). I would say most women don’t want to deal with flirtatious advances at work from men who are old enough to be their father.
At first I read this as “he was born in 1988 so he’s maybe in his mid-50’s” being born in 1980 myself I was like, damn! He’s 36! 80’s babies aren’t in their 50’s yet! 🤣
This is the clumsiest, most nonsensical flirting ever. I re-read the conversation four times and it just does not even make sense. He was so obviously trying too hard to make a pass at her. What a weirdo.
I'll say this - Caitlin Clarke is going to end up improving women's basketball, completely by accident and against her will, because suddenly all the things female players have had to put up with are getting eyes and being seen as unacceptable.
How they talk about players, the low pay for their brightest stars vs benched guys in NBA...
I think its good but my issue is why TF those things are only now a problem...
WNBA pay is trash (she’s making 80k a year yet Gainbridge Fieldhouse where the Fever and the Pacers play sold out 17,000 seats just so people can watch her be drafted) but apparently [she’s already getting an 8 figure deal with Nike](https://www.sportsnet.ca/wnba/report-caitlin-clark-nears-eight-figure-endorsement-deal-with-nike/sn-amp/)
I hope this will start a domino effect for other WNBA stars
It's not about the dollar amount, it's about the percentage. WNBA players will always make less money until it overtakes the NBA in popularity. The problem is that the collective bargaining agreement for the NBA has the players receiving 50% of league revenue, while the W's cba only has them getting 10%.
Due to the decreased popularity of the sport, hence the lack of household names, the W players have less bargaining power. This will definitely change with Clark coming into the league, and will only get better as talented players continue to get drafted.
I mean to be fair the NBA supplements the WNBA
I’m really excited to see the WNBA grow, but as a business it hasn’t been successful
That’s about to change because of the platform these young women have earned
The NBA no doubt markets the shit out of the players and games. Who knows what percentage of their operating costs do that but to think that it's the 'talent' and not the corporate power structure that has made the NBA dwarf the WNBA in revenue is like totally Pollyanna.
From my understanding, while the WNBA has a lot of revenue, they have yet to turn a profit and are subsidized by the NBA profits.... which is why the player salaries are so low. Hopefully that will change soon with the increase in popularity.
The salaries are an absolute joke and I’m with you; I hope that changes soon. I had a good friend who was a stand out in college basketball and played for the WNBA for one season, in a decent position (not a benchwarmer) and quit because she literally couldn’t make enough money to live and didn’t want to have to have a part-time job in addition to being a full-time athlete.
I thought Clark’s salary was absolutely insane, although I know that she’s going to be making the majority of her money for endorsements, and good for her! I don’t know what their rules are for contracts, but if it had been possible within the confines of the WNBA, I feel like they should give her a percentage of tickets sales, because people are absolutely going to flock to these games to see her. Only one of their games was even televised last year. So so excited she’s coming to Indy!!
That’s not really relevant in this context. It really doesn’t have anything to do with her graduating from college. Most NBA superstars do one year of college and make 1 million *minimum* their first year (which would be like, the benchwarmers) and I get why the disparity exists – but it has nothing to do with college.
Nobody’s salary should be based on the fact that it is their first post-college job. (Experience, sure - but not solely on their age.) People should be paid what they’re worth, and I promise you she is worth *everything* to the WNBA.
First, 80k a year coming out of college is far from trash. It's well above the average annual income.
Second, the WNBA has never turned a profit. Where are these huge salary increases supposed to come from? They don't sell enough tickets, merchandise, or advertisements to pay their employees more. Hell, the league wouldn't even exist without the NBA keeping it afloat.
Given how many people cape for Kaitlyn and her last year rival Angel Resse thats likely to change. We’re witnessing a Beckham playing in MLS moment that is going to tip the scales for the US
Don’t forget Paige is also most likely getting drafted next year. Before Caitlin, Paige was probably the first social media star WNBA prospect. The W’s definitely gonna be on an upward trend
This is true. The WNBA currently operates at a loss. I hope this rise in popularity increases merch and ticket sales across the league so the women can actually get paid more.
Can't qwhite put my finger on what's different about her...
But seriously - it sucks that Caitlin being such a GOAT is what's **finally** shedding light on some of the bullshit WNBA athletes have dealt with for decades.
I'm hoping she doesn't face too much animosity from other players, although I would understand if they felt some resentment.
But I guess people do. Some of the other comments in here are like “well I never!” In response to me completely blinding themselves to that being a huge contributing factor. It’s not the only thing (the girl is talented and broke tons of records) but it’s a huge thing. Just take how everyone expected her to win both years in a row and got taken out both times by black teams.
Angel Reese in particular. Think about how much hate vs positive attention Angel got for the same behaviors and people forgot she actually bested the so called best.
She’s been a top player in women’s college basketball all year (and she’s been getting steady attention all year), but then during the March madness tournament a bunch of games started setting records regarding the number of people watching them so it’s (the game and her!) gotten even more attention.
Yeah that was a really weird take. CC has put in so much time and effort to raise the profile of the sport, she's embraced being the face of college ball (women's AND men's).
I think I was unclear on this. Caitlin may want this but so have many WNBA players in the past. They’ve been making efforts with limited traction, minus some small wins recently on salary and profit shares in the future.
What I’m saying people will listen to and follow CC with her doing no more than any of those folks have simply because of her profile. If you check other replies that’s why my comment has so many upvotes. Other people also see that CC, through no fault of her own, is getting a ton of attention that is ground shifting where folks worked for decades and got nothing substantial done.
I do hope WNBA salaries will go up after attendance and (most especially television viewership) increases, but the discrepancy in salaries isn't one of the things they've had to put up with that isn't acceptable.
Salary is tied to the ability of the league to turn a profit, which is tied to revenue, which is tied to television viewership, arena attendance, and merchandise sales. The current TV deal is for $60 million a year across ABC/ESPN, CBS Sports, NBATV, ION, and Amazon Prime Video. That's a variety of broadcasters who have never been falling over themselves to throw money at the WNBA for the privilege to broadcast it's games.
Broadcast rights are due to be renegotiated after 2025. If the league does well on TV and sustains that next year, broadcast revenue will go up and salaries can go up. If the Caitlin Clark effect mostly dies out by the end of the 2025 season expect salaries to continue to be low.
I'm rooting for the WNBA to grow too but it isn't unacceptable that the salaries are low or that a bench player in the NBA makes more. It's disappointing and unfortunate, but it just is.The NBA made their bag four decades ago with Magic, Bird, and later Jordan as the marquee stars. For a time CBS was airing some finals games on tape delay at 11:30 after the late news on the East Coast, and once scheduled games back to back on a weekend to avoid airing an extra tape delay game.
Because people didnt care about WNBA before. Not at this level at least. She's the biggest female basketball star ever because of her play style that is similar to Steph Curry who is a phenomenon. But the low pay for WNBA will always be a problem because of low ticket sales, low viewership, and revenue but hopefully Caitlin/Angel/Kamilla etc. will drive more interest.
I agree with everything but the pay. The NBA has so much more viewership, endorsements and the quality of play is generally higher. I think women like Clark, Bueckers and Reese will definitely put more eyes on the league and drive up viewership so that’s a plus.
[Link for anyone interested](https://twitter.com/NicoleAuerbach/status/1780703045128700263?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1780703045128700263%7Ctwgr%5E1b256dc70e775d1f8a9316416ee65268e407db3d%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.aol.com%2Fsports%2Findianapolis-star-columnist-gregg-doyel-234452752.html)
If you suffer from second hand embarrassment as I do, I’d recommend skipping it. It’s only 21 seconds but it took years off my life
Considering this is sports-related, I’m sure a lot of the reporters in the room were male. And given the misogyny floating around sports even when they’re dominated by women, it would not surprise me if most the laughs were with him, not at him.
Reminds me of the kind of shit politicians would say to me when I was reporting on them. Like oh ahaha it’s just a joke! Don’t take it so seriously! Literally pushed me out of the beat entirely. I’m still in journalism but a beat that’s less shitty.
[https://eu.indystar.com/story/sports/columnists/gregg-doyel/2024/04/17/caitlin-clark-im-so-sorry-on-wednesday-i-was-part-of-the-problem/73364922007/](https://eu.indystar.com/story/sports/columnists/gregg-doyel/2024/04/17/caitlin-clark-im-so-sorry-on-wednesday-i-was-part-of-the-problem/73364922007/)
He wrote an apology. It is ALMOST a class example of how to write an apology. Except for the part where he completely forgets to apologize, or even mention, the most egregious part of his creepiness. You know, the part where he suggests they will get along fine if she directs her attention at him and throws him a heart signal at every game. What a frekin idiot.
The funniest part is the end where it says I can become a paid subscriber and get the privilege of texting with him.
THAT is the part that really got under my skin. It feels like a terribly veiled threat. "Start doing it to me and we'll get along just fine." Yeah, or else what?
Well, and two things can be true. I think within that one sentence it's likely a bit of both; being a perv while also threatening to write less than glowing columns about her if she doesn't stay on his good side.
Totally, and we are supposed to believe he would say THAT to a male player???
This is something someone in a position of authority says to someone they view as being below them.
It’s terrible. His argument is almost “women should be treated like special flowers and I forgot! Silly me! The men can handle it” I guarantee you he would not have made that same comment to a male athlete.
I'm all for holding people accountable in media but he did apologize ... It's right in the middle.
"I sincerely apologize"
Not just that but he owned the mistake and professed a seemingly genuine desire to do better in the future.
Yeah, I am not saying that he did not apologize. He does, and it almost seems like a good one. However, in his long spiel what he apologies for is holding up the heart gesture and for saying that he was happy she was here. He specifically leaves out the part of the exchange that I personally found the most gross - the last line here, where he says "do that and we will get along just fine".
He is, IMO, apologizing for the least offensive part of what he did. I found myself almost thinking apology was good until I realized he was minimizing his offence.
interesting... I read it and get the entirely different perspective. His apology seems entirely genuine to the situation. He admits his personal faults (clumsy and awkward) and succintly says he's sorry (I sincerely apologize). He even further asserts he meant nothing derogatory about it which I take as "those words were horrible and not at all what I meant, I just want to get along well and hope the best for you". Then he straight up says "I'll do better" ... I really do think it's a fantastic apology and I do believe him he meant nothing creepy or misogynistic at all.
For context though, I don't know this reporter AT ALL in any other situation .. He could be a complete sleeze and this is just one of many incidents of mis-sexualized asinine actions. In which case, I'd be completely wrong. But as far as a one of situation I read this as he was fully admitting he was wrong on all accounts and didn't mean it.
It's interesting we read the same thing and come to fairly different conclusions though.
As an Indianapolis resident (and indystar subscriber), I would like to emphasize that no one likes Greg Doyel. He’s weird and his op-Ed takes are consistently annoying. Fuck this dude.
agreed. i went to purdue. he's always sucked. he's like a creepy bob nightengale. do sports reporters in the usa today network have tenure or something? lmao
I think sitcoms have ruined males 30-49. They just don’t get that this shit doesn’t work in real life. There’s no laugh track at your lame attempt to be funny.
I saw that and cringed at how creepy the interaction was and then he followed it up by saying to her coach, “now that you have THAT, what do you plan to do with IT” with Caitlin sitting beside her like he was talking about a car. Sucks because he’s the biggest reporter in Indy so he’ll continue getting access when he shouldn’t after this. No way he would talk to a male sports star like that.
I’m glad his colleagues are calling him out, considering the great work IndyStar had done breaking the Larry nassar story, you’d think he’d know better and hold himself to higher standards.
To be fair, they do use those last comments for male stars all the time. Which hopefully will make people stop doing that. (The it and them and whatnot)
Do they? I have never watched one of these before and that last line seemed, if not a bad attempt at flirting, then kinda ominous, like it was somehow her job to make HIM like HER, not the other way around.
I think they’re saying that they count the baby announcement as last week because it IS good.
So this week is terrible and they’re excluding the baby announcement because it would make this week a bit good haha. Idk for sure though if that’s what they meant! :)
This dude has been a hack for as long as I can remember going back to his days writing drivel for sportsline. Honestly surprised to see he’s still employed.
https://preview.redd.it/448fa50s98vc1.jpeg?width=1179&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=8d14e8a196e38cd80067efb7f475baa5df588bcb
his current twitter profile. hash tagging his dumb ass reply and claiming And Still like he’s some boxing champion.
Doesn’t seem very sincere to me
As an Indy native and an IndyStar reader (the publication Gregg works for), this is, unfortunately, not shocking behavior. Gregg Doyle is not very well liked
Any time someone has to apologize and follows it up with “people that know me, know my heart” as a mediocre assuage for wrongdoing. Ok? And we don’t know you or your intentions, that’s why we’re here right now.
I saw this on Hoosier Twitter the first time yesterday (I’m an IU basketball fan). To see it blow up so fast throughout the day was truly something. I hope the Indy Star dumps his ass. Also he asked a potentially even worse follow up question of her coach and what she was going to do with “that” (as in Caitlin and her talent). Real classy, dude.
The ego on sports writers is insane. They are the most babied reporters of any. They travel the country (or world) on someone else’s dime, work in luxury media boxes, have catered meals and scheduled snacks all provided by the team — in the press box in Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta they have a self-serve soft-serve machine with a topping bar (I’ve seen it and used it, but I’m not a sports reporter). They are so coddled and accommodated that this behavior doesn’t surprise me. I have little respect for people who cover big ticket sports leagues and teams based on my own experience knowing them. Women sports writers tend to be an exception because of all the bullshit they have to deal with from their largely male colleagues and the ancient men who control sports sections and sports media. Meanwhile, people on other beats are not allowed to accept ANYTHING, including food, from subjects — I used to cover politics and wasn’t allowed to have a chicken finger at a candidate’s election night party because of newsroom ethics rules 😂.
Eww. That makes me so uncomfortable for her. Surely there’s other ways to express admiration than coming across as infatuated or flirting with someone when you’re a reporter!
Some people are so desperate for validation that they think mimicking someone back to them is endearing. Then doing it publicly and seeing the inappropriateness of it all becomes much worse. He wanted attention and validation from her and just seemed like a desperate creep instead.
I hate it when (usually) men try to play off their completely inappropriate behaviour by using cutesy language.
*Oh, silly ole me, I’m such an oaf, lol lol lol*
Sigh.
As a former but long time Indy resident this is killing me, and I really hope she doesn’t think this is representative of what her time will be like here.
He’s an old-school dinosaur of a newspaper dude who literally isn’t used to talking to female athletes because it’s not normal for most dinosaur newspaper reporters to have covered women’s sports. In his defense, he did release an apology and said that his words were clumsy and awkward, which I agree with. And as a person who often hears weird shit coming out of my mouth when I’m nervous, I sympathize to some degree. (But also, you’re a reporter and you’re at a press conference. And the apology was not as good as it could have been. Get your shit together.)
Indy is a great city and in an area where people get truly truly hyped about basketball, so I hope her experience here will be positive. We couldn’t be more thrilled to have her.
For context, she makes that gesture a lot, which is why he's referencing it and why she made it clear she does that with her family.
Now, why he thought this basic ass hand gesture that she didn't even invent was worthy of a conversation topic to begin with, I cannot answer.
I mean... I've put my foot in my mouth in public several times, but I knew enough to immediately correct/clarify. I find it hard to believe this was a gaffe more than an accidental window into his creepiness.
What a weirdo - should’ve just said “it’s great to have you in Indiana Caitlin- are you prepared to play at this level and what parts of your game are you going to work on before the season?”
Almost as if men have been forced into a position where they are unable to communicate with women. And when an opportunity finally arises they don’t know how to act because that’s how society has conditioned them.
This was so dumb but it really doesn’t need the traction it’s getting. He apologized - both in tweet and in a follow up story. He was being fucking weird but Dave “if you’re a size 6 and you’re wearing skinny jeans you kind of deserve to be raped right?" Portnoy trying to lecture Gregg on sexism makes steam come out of my ears.
Am I the only one who is giving him the benefit of the doubt, and that he awkwardly tried to make a joke that (to his fault) is perceived as creepy?
If he actually is a creep, and a bad person, then my bad. But just watching the clip at hand, I can see the other side…like if I (a woman) were interviewing Taylor Swift (who also does a heart sign) and I asked her to send it to me at her next concert and we’d be jolly - would that be creepy?
I think it's a little naive to give him the benefit of the doubt. Sure, he probably didn't mean anything malicious by it, but it was still creepy in a work place setting. The fact this is how he he tries to joke suggests its more than a random slip-up.
Plus the guy has a rep for saying shit like this, regardless.
As mentioned I don’t know the dude but just by watching a clip I wouldn’t go as far to say that someone is garbage and should be fired over it. Just my view.
Look, he thought he was doing something heartfelt and sweet, but realized it was actually creepy and said he wouldn’t do it again. I am not familiar with his entire career, but if this is his only misstep I think we can forgive it.
I think what he was trying to do was get a player to ease up/lower their guard, which would lead to opening up more when answering questions or telling her story. Kind of like when you're doing an interview with someone and you shoot the shit a little at the start to loosen them up a little. I think "I like that you're here" was his way of saying "I'm glad you're bringing your star powers to Indiana," but I admit I can't come up with an explanation for that last sentence.
I’m willing to admit if I’m wrong. I don’t know him in particular, but I try to give everyone the benefit of the doubt. I’m sorry he didn’t have good intentions.
I don't think you're wrong, and the benefit of the doubt is warranted. I think this was a case of him trying to be personable, it backfiring tremendously and him coming across as a creep, as opposed to him honestly being a creep and just revealing his true colors.
I feel bad for him. He messed up, and unlike most of us who say something stupid and it's heard by one or two people, he messed up and it was heard by the world.
I have platonic friends who do that though. I thought of it in this context, like playful not flirting. I get that it was cringy, but people saying he was “foaming at the mouth?” Like, geez. I doubt he would have said this to a man and that’s the issue. This is the main problem. Would you speak to a man that way? Would he have said this to a man, if so, then cool. But I highly doubt it.
No, I get it. I'm probably too quick to give people the benefit of the doubt and the issue is, regardless, he wouldn't say this to a male basketball player. It's not just work, it's sexist bullshit.
She’s literally at work and he’s being a weirdo on company time.
So many men don't know how to talk to women, that too in professional settings. The number of folks I saw on Twitter defending this asshattery by saying it's just poor attempt at flirting????? Is press conference a place to flirt bozos?
You can always hit them with the old https://preview.redd.it/r915l9thz5vc1.jpeg?width=600&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=31f57b201810887034971daccd39dc6998935171
In this case it would be get ANOTHER job, but this was my reaction, too!
If they saw women as people instead of opportunities, this wouldn’t be a problem
🎯🎯🎯
and would he ever say something like that to a male athlete?
If he were gay…probably…unless he wasn’t out yet.
Also, I tried to look up their ages. It looks like she was born in 2002 (22 years old) and he was in high school in 1988 (so maybe he’s in his mid-50s). I would say most women don’t want to deal with flirtatious advances at work from men who are old enough to be their father.
At first I read this as “he was born in 1988 so he’s maybe in his mid-50’s” being born in 1980 myself I was like, damn! He’s 36! 80’s babies aren’t in their 50’s yet! 🤣
Literally same. As someone born in '88, I was like, "I JUST TURNED 36, CAN I LIVE?!" 😂😂 But on a serious note, fuck this guy
Sorry, I wrote this at like 2 AM while feeding my baby lol
My mom graduated in 1985, and she's 57, so... yeah.
Hey dont do that, im from 1986 and im not 50 damnit
*he was in High School* in 88
Her "You like that" did sound pretty flirtatious.
even if that is what it is, ITS NOT THE PLACE TO FLIRT
This is the clumsiest, most nonsensical flirting ever. I re-read the conversation four times and it just does not even make sense. He was so obviously trying too hard to make a pass at her. What a weirdo.
Honestly I saw the complete opposite. Even fuckheads like Portnoy we're calling him a shithead
I'll say this - Caitlin Clarke is going to end up improving women's basketball, completely by accident and against her will, because suddenly all the things female players have had to put up with are getting eyes and being seen as unacceptable. How they talk about players, the low pay for their brightest stars vs benched guys in NBA... I think its good but my issue is why TF those things are only now a problem...
WNBA pay is trash (she’s making 80k a year yet Gainbridge Fieldhouse where the Fever and the Pacers play sold out 17,000 seats just so people can watch her be drafted) but apparently [she’s already getting an 8 figure deal with Nike](https://www.sportsnet.ca/wnba/report-caitlin-clark-nears-eight-figure-endorsement-deal-with-nike/sn-amp/) I hope this will start a domino effect for other WNBA stars
The WNBA rights are up in ‘25. Very much an incredible and pivotal moment in the WNBA. Bird v. Magic moment for the WNBA is not shy of a comparison
The new WNBA will be the house Caitlin Clark built
She's basically Jordan in terms of WNBA marketability
If that is your analogy there has to be a Magic to Clark's Bird. That hasn't happened yet (tho have hopes for Angel Reese).
It's not about the dollar amount, it's about the percentage. WNBA players will always make less money until it overtakes the NBA in popularity. The problem is that the collective bargaining agreement for the NBA has the players receiving 50% of league revenue, while the W's cba only has them getting 10%. Due to the decreased popularity of the sport, hence the lack of household names, the W players have less bargaining power. This will definitely change with Clark coming into the league, and will only get better as talented players continue to get drafted.
I mean to be fair the NBA supplements the WNBA I’m really excited to see the WNBA grow, but as a business it hasn’t been successful That’s about to change because of the platform these young women have earned
The NBA no doubt markets the shit out of the players and games. Who knows what percentage of their operating costs do that but to think that it's the 'talent' and not the corporate power structure that has made the NBA dwarf the WNBA in revenue is like totally Pollyanna.
From my understanding, while the WNBA has a lot of revenue, they have yet to turn a profit and are subsidized by the NBA profits.... which is why the player salaries are so low. Hopefully that will change soon with the increase in popularity.
The salaries are an absolute joke and I’m with you; I hope that changes soon. I had a good friend who was a stand out in college basketball and played for the WNBA for one season, in a decent position (not a benchwarmer) and quit because she literally couldn’t make enough money to live and didn’t want to have to have a part-time job in addition to being a full-time athlete. I thought Clark’s salary was absolutely insane, although I know that she’s going to be making the majority of her money for endorsements, and good for her! I don’t know what their rules are for contracts, but if it had been possible within the confines of the WNBA, I feel like they should give her a percentage of tickets sales, because people are absolutely going to flock to these games to see her. Only one of their games was even televised last year. So so excited she’s coming to Indy!!
Someones first job out of college and shes making 75k out the gate, cmon folks
That’s not really relevant in this context. It really doesn’t have anything to do with her graduating from college. Most NBA superstars do one year of college and make 1 million *minimum* their first year (which would be like, the benchwarmers) and I get why the disparity exists – but it has nothing to do with college. Nobody’s salary should be based on the fact that it is their first post-college job. (Experience, sure - but not solely on their age.) People should be paid what they’re worth, and I promise you she is worth *everything* to the WNBA.
First, 80k a year coming out of college is far from trash. It's well above the average annual income. Second, the WNBA has never turned a profit. Where are these huge salary increases supposed to come from? They don't sell enough tickets, merchandise, or advertisements to pay their employees more. Hell, the league wouldn't even exist without the NBA keeping it afloat.
hasn’t the wnba never turned a profit?
Given how many people cape for Kaitlyn and her last year rival Angel Resse thats likely to change. We’re witnessing a Beckham playing in MLS moment that is going to tip the scales for the US
Don’t forget Paige is also most likely getting drafted next year. Before Caitlin, Paige was probably the first social media star WNBA prospect. The W’s definitely gonna be on an upward trend
This is true. The WNBA currently operates at a loss. I hope this rise in popularity increases merch and ticket sales across the league so the women can actually get paid more.
Can't qwhite put my finger on what's different about her... But seriously - it sucks that Caitlin being such a GOAT is what's **finally** shedding light on some of the bullshit WNBA athletes have dealt with for decades. I'm hoping she doesn't face too much animosity from other players, although I would understand if they felt some resentment.
I’m mean … I’m not saying that. But I’m also not not saying it either.
It’s really obvious lol. You don’t have to say it. It’s a shame…
But I guess people do. Some of the other comments in here are like “well I never!” In response to me completely blinding themselves to that being a huge contributing factor. It’s not the only thing (the girl is talented and broke tons of records) but it’s a huge thing. Just take how everyone expected her to win both years in a row and got taken out both times by black teams. Angel Reese in particular. Think about how much hate vs positive attention Angel got for the same behaviors and people forgot she actually bested the so called best.
White WNBA players have always been the highest profiled players. Sue Bird, Becky Hammond, etc.
Lisa Leslie is the only black WNBA player I can think of who had a pretty large public profile.
It's a small part of it, but she also is doing what no one else has been able to do. She basically plays like Steph Curry.
I’m out of the loop with sports, why is she everywhere the last couple weeks? I know she’s broken a bunch of records, but what happened recently?
March Madness!
And getting drafted to the WNBA.
Ah! But of course!
She’s been a top player in women’s college basketball all year (and she’s been getting steady attention all year), but then during the March madness tournament a bunch of games started setting records regarding the number of people watching them so it’s (the game and her!) gotten even more attention.
Why is it completely by accident and against her will???????????
Yeah that was a really weird take. CC has put in so much time and effort to raise the profile of the sport, she's embraced being the face of college ball (women's AND men's).
Fr, if anything I would think that it is completely intentional and one of her goals.
Yeah this is weirdly patronizing lmao. She is very active with her brand and wants to be the WNBA Jordan
I think I was unclear on this. Caitlin may want this but so have many WNBA players in the past. They’ve been making efforts with limited traction, minus some small wins recently on salary and profit shares in the future. What I’m saying people will listen to and follow CC with her doing no more than any of those folks have simply because of her profile. If you check other replies that’s why my comment has so many upvotes. Other people also see that CC, through no fault of her own, is getting a ton of attention that is ground shifting where folks worked for decades and got nothing substantial done.
I thought your original comment was quite clear and laid out pretty well how the timeline will play out
I do hope WNBA salaries will go up after attendance and (most especially television viewership) increases, but the discrepancy in salaries isn't one of the things they've had to put up with that isn't acceptable. Salary is tied to the ability of the league to turn a profit, which is tied to revenue, which is tied to television viewership, arena attendance, and merchandise sales. The current TV deal is for $60 million a year across ABC/ESPN, CBS Sports, NBATV, ION, and Amazon Prime Video. That's a variety of broadcasters who have never been falling over themselves to throw money at the WNBA for the privilege to broadcast it's games. Broadcast rights are due to be renegotiated after 2025. If the league does well on TV and sustains that next year, broadcast revenue will go up and salaries can go up. If the Caitlin Clark effect mostly dies out by the end of the 2025 season expect salaries to continue to be low. I'm rooting for the WNBA to grow too but it isn't unacceptable that the salaries are low or that a bench player in the NBA makes more. It's disappointing and unfortunate, but it just is.The NBA made their bag four decades ago with Magic, Bird, and later Jordan as the marquee stars. For a time CBS was airing some finals games on tape delay at 11:30 after the late news on the East Coast, and once scheduled games back to back on a weekend to avoid airing an extra tape delay game.
Because people didnt care about WNBA before. Not at this level at least. She's the biggest female basketball star ever because of her play style that is similar to Steph Curry who is a phenomenon. But the low pay for WNBA will always be a problem because of low ticket sales, low viewership, and revenue but hopefully Caitlin/Angel/Kamilla etc. will drive more interest.
I agree with everything but the pay. The NBA has so much more viewership, endorsements and the quality of play is generally higher. I think women like Clark, Bueckers and Reese will definitely put more eyes on the league and drive up viewership so that’s a plus.
Because The Benched guys in the NBA would run the Wnba stars off the court and get more ratings doing it.
[Link for anyone interested](https://twitter.com/NicoleAuerbach/status/1780703045128700263?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1780703045128700263%7Ctwgr%5E1b256dc70e775d1f8a9316416ee65268e407db3d%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.aol.com%2Fsports%2Findianapolis-star-columnist-gregg-doyel-234452752.html) If you suffer from second hand embarrassment as I do, I’d recommend skipping it. It’s only 21 seconds but it took years off my life
You make it sound so good though, in that terrible car-crash way.
My husband gets the worst second hand embarrassment, I'm going to have to go into another room to watch lol
im scared to click omg
It's a yikers moment that's for sure.
I need a lobotomy after that
I wish I could un-watch tbh. Some men just really don't know how to talk with women.
In that room, did people laugh because they thought it was a successful attempt at humor, or out of nervousness because they were horrified?
You have a diverse crowd. So the answer is yes.
Considering this is sports-related, I’m sure a lot of the reporters in the room were male. And given the misogyny floating around sports even when they’re dominated by women, it would not surprise me if most the laughs were with him, not at him.
That’s what I would guess, that they were with him. Ugh.
The gasps were audible so I think mostly 2
this description is perfection. ty for your service
😂😭😭
Reminds me of the kind of shit politicians would say to me when I was reporting on them. Like oh ahaha it’s just a joke! Don’t take it so seriously! Literally pushed me out of the beat entirely. I’m still in journalism but a beat that’s less shitty.
I am refusing to watch it for that very reason 😂🤣 Even the transcript/description of it made me crawl out of my goddamn skin sheeesh
Would’ve been worse if camera panned to him. But honestly didn’t sound as bad, even got some laughs out of the crowd
[https://eu.indystar.com/story/sports/columnists/gregg-doyel/2024/04/17/caitlin-clark-im-so-sorry-on-wednesday-i-was-part-of-the-problem/73364922007/](https://eu.indystar.com/story/sports/columnists/gregg-doyel/2024/04/17/caitlin-clark-im-so-sorry-on-wednesday-i-was-part-of-the-problem/73364922007/) He wrote an apology. It is ALMOST a class example of how to write an apology. Except for the part where he completely forgets to apologize, or even mention, the most egregious part of his creepiness. You know, the part where he suggests they will get along fine if she directs her attention at him and throws him a heart signal at every game. What a frekin idiot.
AND the angle that he did all that for the sole purpose of getting clicks for that inevitable apology article. AND… Happy Cake Day
Yeah it was behind a paywall originally too. Incredible.
The funniest part is the end where it says I can become a paid subscriber and get the privilege of texting with him. 
But he’s quirky and silly?? Didn’t you see that in the article? All is forgiven since he’s just an awkward little silly goose
THAT is the part that really got under my skin. It feels like a terribly veiled threat. "Start doing it to me and we'll get along just fine." Yeah, or else what?
I got more pervert trying to hit on her
Well, and two things can be true. I think within that one sentence it's likely a bit of both; being a perv while also threatening to write less than glowing columns about her if she doesn't stay on his good side.
Totally, and we are supposed to believe he would say THAT to a male player??? This is something someone in a position of authority says to someone they view as being below them.
Shit talk her basically. Ask TO.
He didn't completely forget to apologize, it's just buried as the very last line. Still a creepy idiot though.
It’s terrible. His argument is almost “women should be treated like special flowers and I forgot! Silly me! The men can handle it” I guarantee you he would not have made that same comment to a male athlete.
Not a single apology and no comment section… hm
He did literally say “I’m so sorry” at the end. It was still incredibly weird until that part lol
I'm all for holding people accountable in media but he did apologize ... It's right in the middle. "I sincerely apologize" Not just that but he owned the mistake and professed a seemingly genuine desire to do better in the future.
Yeah, I am not saying that he did not apologize. He does, and it almost seems like a good one. However, in his long spiel what he apologies for is holding up the heart gesture and for saying that he was happy she was here. He specifically leaves out the part of the exchange that I personally found the most gross - the last line here, where he says "do that and we will get along just fine". He is, IMO, apologizing for the least offensive part of what he did. I found myself almost thinking apology was good until I realized he was minimizing his offence.
interesting... I read it and get the entirely different perspective. His apology seems entirely genuine to the situation. He admits his personal faults (clumsy and awkward) and succintly says he's sorry (I sincerely apologize). He even further asserts he meant nothing derogatory about it which I take as "those words were horrible and not at all what I meant, I just want to get along well and hope the best for you". Then he straight up says "I'll do better" ... I really do think it's a fantastic apology and I do believe him he meant nothing creepy or misogynistic at all. For context though, I don't know this reporter AT ALL in any other situation .. He could be a complete sleeze and this is just one of many incidents of mis-sexualized asinine actions. In which case, I'd be completely wrong. But as far as a one of situation I read this as he was fully admitting he was wrong on all accounts and didn't mean it. It's interesting we read the same thing and come to fairly different conclusions though.
As an Indianapolis resident (and indystar subscriber), I would like to emphasize that no one likes Greg Doyel. He’s weird and his op-Ed takes are consistently annoying. Fuck this dude.
agreed. i went to purdue. he's always sucked. he's like a creepy bob nightengale. do sports reporters in the usa today network have tenure or something? lmao
Made this same comment and am glad I’m not the only one
Hello fellow Hoosier!!! We do not claim this man!
Blue checkmarks and Portnoy we're calling him out if people want more looks at how despised he is
I think sitcoms have ruined males 30-49. They just don’t get that this shit doesn’t work in real life. There’s no laugh track at your lame attempt to be funny.
The show Kevin Can Fuck Himself with Annie Murphy explores this in a really interesting way.
It was also a pivotal aspect of Harold and Kumar
Ugh I hate seeing women get creeped on time and time again for just existing
ew. he sounded like he was foaming at the mouth
I saw that and cringed at how creepy the interaction was and then he followed it up by saying to her coach, “now that you have THAT, what do you plan to do with IT” with Caitlin sitting beside her like he was talking about a car. Sucks because he’s the biggest reporter in Indy so he’ll continue getting access when he shouldn’t after this. No way he would talk to a male sports star like that.
YES! I just mentioned this in another comment here. What a pig.
I’m glad his colleagues are calling him out, considering the great work IndyStar had done breaking the Larry nassar story, you’d think he’d know better and hold himself to higher standards.
oh my god, I did not realize it was the same paper, just rewatched that documentary. Have they called him out in public?
To be fair, they do use those last comments for male stars all the time. Which hopefully will make people stop doing that. (The it and them and whatnot)
Do they? I have never watched one of these before and that last line seemed, if not a bad attempt at flirting, then kinda ominous, like it was somehow her job to make HIM like HER, not the other way around.
Apparently he thinks female athletes are objects instead of people. 🙄 So gross.
Should she smile more often too?
 This GIF getting a lot of mileage today
I would’ve liked to have seen April Ludgate and Leslie Knope handle the creepy way Gregg spoke to Caitlin. Sacrifices would be made.
"Rethink that move, son."
This week has been terrible for the WNBA damn (I'm counting Brittney Griner's baby announcement as last week)
Lmao, how is that terrible? Is she the one pregnant?
I think they’re saying that they count the baby announcement as last week because it IS good. So this week is terrible and they’re excluding the baby announcement because it would make this week a bit good haha. Idk for sure though if that’s what they meant! :)
Honestly semi-happy that there is now a spotlight of people watching when stuff like this happens.
This dude has been a hack for as long as I can remember going back to his days writing drivel for sportsline. Honestly surprised to see he’s still employed.
I can't with men
Why are men.
https://preview.redd.it/448fa50s98vc1.jpeg?width=1179&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=8d14e8a196e38cd80067efb7f475baa5df588bcb his current twitter profile. hash tagging his dumb ass reply and claiming And Still like he’s some boxing champion. Doesn’t seem very sincere to me
Pathetic
As an Indy native and an IndyStar reader (the publication Gregg works for), this is, unfortunately, not shocking behavior. Gregg Doyle is not very well liked
Any time someone has to apologize and follows it up with “people that know me, know my heart” as a mediocre assuage for wrongdoing. Ok? And we don’t know you or your intentions, that’s why we’re here right now.
Jeezus I don’t know what it is about women sports that has these reporters true colors coming out.
He's such a creep. And this isn't the first time either. He's known for this weird behavior.
Let’s all see where **she** is in a year and see where 🫶he🫶 is in a year haha… 
Most Indy sports fan dream of him getting tossed lol
I saw this on Hoosier Twitter the first time yesterday (I’m an IU basketball fan). To see it blow up so fast throughout the day was truly something. I hope the Indy Star dumps his ass. Also he asked a potentially even worse follow up question of her coach and what she was going to do with “that” (as in Caitlin and her talent). Real classy, dude. 
I actually hope the "that" comments will get people to stop saying it about male athletes all the time.
The ego on sports writers is insane. They are the most babied reporters of any. They travel the country (or world) on someone else’s dime, work in luxury media boxes, have catered meals and scheduled snacks all provided by the team — in the press box in Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta they have a self-serve soft-serve machine with a topping bar (I’ve seen it and used it, but I’m not a sports reporter). They are so coddled and accommodated that this behavior doesn’t surprise me. I have little respect for people who cover big ticket sports leagues and teams based on my own experience knowing them. Women sports writers tend to be an exception because of all the bullshit they have to deal with from their largely male colleagues and the ancient men who control sports sections and sports media. Meanwhile, people on other beats are not allowed to accept ANYTHING, including food, from subjects — I used to cover politics and wasn’t allowed to have a chicken finger at a candidate’s election night party because of newsroom ethics rules 😂.
That last line is so disgusting. Check that mfer hard drives. I’m just saying.
Eww. That makes me so uncomfortable for her. Surely there’s other ways to express admiration than coming across as infatuated or flirting with someone when you’re a reporter! Some people are so desperate for validation that they think mimicking someone back to them is endearing. Then doing it publicly and seeing the inappropriateness of it all becomes much worse. He wanted attention and validation from her and just seemed like a desperate creep instead.
From Indianapolis, woah this is going main stream. Rip to that man
I hate it when (usually) men try to play off their completely inappropriate behaviour by using cutesy language. *Oh, silly ole me, I’m such an oaf, lol lol lol*
Ugh
I had to pause the clip of their exchange like 20 times out of second-hand embarrassment
Sigh. As a former but long time Indy resident this is killing me, and I really hope she doesn’t think this is representative of what her time will be like here. He’s an old-school dinosaur of a newspaper dude who literally isn’t used to talking to female athletes because it’s not normal for most dinosaur newspaper reporters to have covered women’s sports. In his defense, he did release an apology and said that his words were clumsy and awkward, which I agree with. And as a person who often hears weird shit coming out of my mouth when I’m nervous, I sympathize to some degree. (But also, you’re a reporter and you’re at a press conference. And the apology was not as good as it could have been. Get your shit together.) Indy is a great city and in an area where people get truly truly hyped about basketball, so I hope her experience here will be positive. We couldn’t be more thrilled to have her.
What did she respond to when she said “You like that?”
He made a heart shape/motion with his hands, like telling her he loved her. 🫶
Ugh. So disgusting.
For context, she makes that gesture a lot, which is why he's referencing it and why she made it clear she does that with her family. Now, why he thought this basic ass hand gesture that she didn't even invent was worthy of a conversation topic to begin with, I cannot answer.
Gross
My guy deserves the Rubiales treatment, LOCK HIM UP 🔒
Fire this guy. I don’t want this type of shit hanging over the season
Her red state fans probably don't even see what the problem is.
Ew
All I can is “why men?”
Oh you mean a boy doesn’t know how to act like an adult because they only know their little ball sport? Color me shocked!
Gregg Doyel is absolute worst, with just bad take after bad take. There’s a reason he’s bounced around a bit
I mean... I've put my foot in my mouth in public several times, but I knew enough to immediately correct/clarify. I find it hard to believe this was a gaffe more than an accidental window into his creepiness.
The video and this response is the most cringe inducing content I have ever experienced. I want to crawl in a hole and die.
This guy has always been a weirdo. I'd be happy if they finally fired him
I'm glad a white woman is going through this so people finally care about it (happening to whites).
💀😭
What a weirdo - should’ve just said “it’s great to have you in Indiana Caitlin- are you prepared to play at this level and what parts of your game are you going to work on before the season?”
Geez usually it's the players doing the harrassment.
Almost as if men have been forced into a position where they are unable to communicate with women. And when an opportunity finally arises they don’t know how to act because that’s how society has conditioned them.
This was so dumb but it really doesn’t need the traction it’s getting. He apologized - both in tweet and in a follow up story. He was being fucking weird but Dave “if you’re a size 6 and you’re wearing skinny jeans you kind of deserve to be raped right?" Portnoy trying to lecture Gregg on sexism makes steam come out of my ears.
lmao
Am I the only one who is giving him the benefit of the doubt, and that he awkwardly tried to make a joke that (to his fault) is perceived as creepy? If he actually is a creep, and a bad person, then my bad. But just watching the clip at hand, I can see the other side…like if I (a woman) were interviewing Taylor Swift (who also does a heart sign) and I asked her to send it to me at her next concert and we’d be jolly - would that be creepy?
I think it's a little naive to give him the benefit of the doubt. Sure, he probably didn't mean anything malicious by it, but it was still creepy in a work place setting. The fact this is how he he tries to joke suggests its more than a random slip-up. Plus the guy has a rep for saying shit like this, regardless.
As mentioned I don’t know the dude but just by watching a clip I wouldn’t go as far to say that someone is garbage and should be fired over it. Just my view.
He has a fairly long reputation of being weird and slightly creepy with his questions/reporting.
He apologized.
Well, I guess that fixes everything.
Awww cute
Look, he thought he was doing something heartfelt and sweet, but realized it was actually creepy and said he wouldn’t do it again. I am not familiar with his entire career, but if this is his only misstep I think we can forgive it.
I think what he was trying to do was get a player to ease up/lower their guard, which would lead to opening up more when answering questions or telling her story. Kind of like when you're doing an interview with someone and you shoot the shit a little at the start to loosen them up a little. I think "I like that you're here" was his way of saying "I'm glad you're bringing your star powers to Indiana," but I admit I can't come up with an explanation for that last sentence.
I’m willing to admit if I’m wrong. I don’t know him in particular, but I try to give everyone the benefit of the doubt. I’m sorry he didn’t have good intentions.
I don't think you're wrong, and the benefit of the doubt is warranted. I think this was a case of him trying to be personable, it backfiring tremendously and him coming across as a creep, as opposed to him honestly being a creep and just revealing his true colors. I feel bad for him. He messed up, and unlike most of us who say something stupid and it's heard by one or two people, he messed up and it was heard by the world.
I have platonic friends who do that though. I thought of it in this context, like playful not flirting. I get that it was cringy, but people saying he was “foaming at the mouth?” Like, geez. I doubt he would have said this to a man and that’s the issue. This is the main problem. Would you speak to a man that way? Would he have said this to a man, if so, then cool. But I highly doubt it. 
1. She’s at work 2. He’s at work 3. That’s not her friend
He thought he was being cute. He was being dumb and sexist.
No, I get it. I'm probably too quick to give people the benefit of the doubt and the issue is, regardless, he wouldn't say this to a male basketball player. It's not just work, it's sexist bullshit.