As a regular reader of the ShaqFu Radio blog, you already know our man Shaq is a big fan of the WNBA, and especially rookie superstar Angel Reese of the Chicago Sky. But it’s not just one team or one player – O’Neal is quick to send his praises to the other big name that entered the W this year, Caitlin Clark.
O’Neal and Reese’s relationship goes back to Angel’s college days at LSU, Shaq’s alma mater. So yeah, there’s that connection. The two have built a friendship and a bond, and O’Neal was instrumental in helping Reese get through some tough times in LSU days. The connection is so strong that Reese says Shaq is a father figure in her life.
Unfortunately for Reese, this year’s WNBA season is over. She suffered an injury to her wrist this past Saturday night (as of this posting date). Writing on her X account, the Chicago Sky rookie said “I’m filled with emotions right now that I have a season-ending injury, but also filled with so much gratitude for what is next. Although this is God’s timing and not mine, I am finally able to give myself a physical and mental break.”
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In an interview with USA TODAY Sports this week, O’Neal talked about both Reese and Indiana Fever star Caitlin Clark, calling her “the real deal.” O’Neal was in the house in Chicago back on August 30th to see Reese’s Sky take on Clark’s Fever in the teams’ final meeting of the 2024 season. Part of the reason for Shaq’s attendance: Reese’s first wearing of Reebok’s newest basketball shoe. Check previous posts here on the blog for info on Reese signing up with Reebok, where Shaq is new President of Basketball Operations, looking to rebuild and rebrand the company’s lineup of sports apparel.
In that game, BTW, Clark and the rest of her Fever teammates were Shaq-style dominant, beating the Sky 100-81. O’Neal had a front-row seat to see Clark score a career-high 31 points. She also pulled down 11 rebounds and dished out 12 assists. For the Sky, Reese had 10 points and 11 rebounds.
Shaq was definitely impressed: “When I see stuff on TV I’m like, OK, I’d like to see it in person. Well, I saw it in person… she can play … from a basketball standpoint, she makes all the right plays, gets everybody involved and she has that Steph Curry (shooting) range.”
Even with Reese out for the remainder of the season, O’Neal is thinking the rivalry between Clark and Reese will definitely be around for years to come, and that’s a great thing for the ladies’ game: “What makes it good for the game is it’ll be those two forever. You can make little games of it. In college, Angel’s up one (cause of winning a national championship). Now you can say, OK Caitlin’s in the playoffs, is Angel going to make the playoffs? Little games that you can play that keep their names going. I’m happy for both of them, I’m happy for women’s sports.”
With all the newfound publicity and eyes on the W’s game, Shaq repeated his opinion to USA TODAY that it’s time for the money to start flowing a little better to WNBA players. “Now it’s time for equal pay,” he said. “They’ve always been great, but the space they’re in now, it’s time for everybody to be getting equal pay. I would love to see one of them make $10, 15, 20 million a year, they deserve it. But the fans have to continue to support … you gotta keep (going) to the games, buying merch, you gotta keep doing all that stuff and the more they do that, the more they’ll get paid.”
The money thing is going to be interesting, for sure. This is the first year the WNBA has had such broad-based appeal to hoops fans. A few players – Clark and Reese included – have seen their share of TV commercial deals and other money-making opportunities off the court. If ratings, attendance and sponsorship support continue to grow, so will the ladies’ paychecks.