Former WNBA star Renee Montgomery shared a stern PSA to “vicious” Caitlin Clark stans after Angel Reese recently accused some of the Fever star’s fans of being racist.
Montgomery — who won two championships with the Lynx in her 11-year WNBA career and went onto become a co-owner of the Dream in 2021 — addressed the situation involving the fan bases of the All-Star rookies, whose college rivalry has spilled over to the league.
“Today, I want to talk about Caitlin Clark and her fan base,” she said on her “Montgomery & Co.” podcast Tuesday. “Besides the bots, I don’t even think some of her faux fans even watch her game. The Caitlin Clark stans have taken on a life of their own … This whole PSA right now, it doesn’t apply to regular Caitlin basketball fans.
“… I’m speaking on a particular group that is motivated by hate and destruction and if that’s not you, then this is not about you … It doesn’t even seem like it’s about Caitlin with the stans… they’re just on social media ready to fight.
“… That is not a representation of us [a longtime WNBA fan]. For instance … a diehard Falcons fan can hate the Saints but they would be going a little bit too far if they created nude AI pictures of Saints players and then sent them to Saints players’ families. That’s what Caitlin stans have done to Angel Reese.”
Montgomery, who helped lead UConn to the 2009 NCAA National Championship, addressed that matter after Reese said she was the victim of fake AI nude photos, death threats and racism on social media.
“It’s OK to be a hater in sports, hating in sports is a part of the game,” said Montgomery, who finished her WNBA career with the Dream after sitting out the 2020 season to focus on social reform and justice.
“I like when our fans are so engaged and so passionate that they just don’t like the other team. But being racist, sexist and violent with your words — come on now, what are we doing? … That’s not acceptable.”
Reese opened up on the issue during a recent episode of her podcast.
“It’s really just the fans, her fans, the Iowa fans, now the Indiana fans … they ride for her,” Reese said during a recent installment of her “Unapologetically Angel” podcast. “And I respect that.
“Respectfully, but sometimes it’s very disrespectful. I think there is a lot of racism when it comes to it. And I don’t believe [Clark] stands on any of that.”
Reese went on to say she has received death threats.
“People have come down to my address, followed me home — it’s come down to that. [On] multiple occasions, people have made AI pictures of me, like naked, literally. They have sent it to my family members. My family members, my uncles are sending it to me like, ‘Oh, are you naked on Instagram?’ Reese said.
“It sucks to see that and it’s really hard that I have to go through that and now seeing other players having to go through that. But at the end of the day, it’s a game that we do both love but here is no hate [between us].”
Clark and Reese’s college rivalry and popularity have helped boost the WNBA’s ratings, revenue and viewership, but some fans have gotten carried away.
Reese, who the Sky selected out of LSU with the No. 7 overall pick in the 2024 WNBA Draft, was named the 2023 NCAA women’s tournament Most Outstanding Player after the Tigers beat Clark and Iowa, 102-85, to win the national championship.
The Hawkeyes beat the Tigers in the Elite Eight of this year’s March Madness tournament, but lost to the South Carolina Gamecocks in the title game.
Last week, WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert faced backlash from players after she sidestepped a question about how she handles the “darker” side of social media and its impact on the league’s players, specifically when it comes to Clark and Reese’s fan bases.
Instead, during a recent appearance on CNBC’s “Power Lunch,” Engelbert focused on the benefits of Clark-Reese rivalry, which she compared to NBA legends Magic Johnson and Larry Bird, whose playing days took place before social media existed.