LeBron James and Caitlin Clark are arguably two sides of the same coin as the flag-bearers of basketball in their respective genders. While LeBron is at the end of his career and Caitlin is at the start of hers, both stars are among the most influential figures in the sport right now.
Clark has had her fair share of negative experiences with the media in her years of popularity, stretching back to her college days, while James can't go a day without being attacked by a member of the press. This fact was reinforced by a recent interview with University of Wisconsin–Green Bay head coach Doug Gottlieb.
Gottlieb recently appeared on 'The Dan Patrick Show' and clarified his criticism of Clark's shooting form, praising her for working hard and adjusting her shot.
"Yes... She was shooting the ball from the left side of her nose. She had a little Lonzo Ball, and she's since adjusted it. The point of the tweet was to commend her for shooting through a shooting flaw. If you watch her form now, take a snapshot of it from last year when she was heading into the WNBA, she changed it."
However, Gottlieb used this opportunity to take a random shot at LeBron, slamming the 40-year-old forward as insecure.
"She's not like LeBron James, that she's so insecure she needs to tweet at me. Well, that's the reality. Why are you tweeting about me on your day off? "
The LeBron mention was quite unnecessary in this case. His praise for Clark was refreshing to hear, but the comment about LeBron takes the positivity right out of his comment.
Gottlieb had a very open disagreement with LeBron about Bronny James' NBA career at the same time LeBron was aggressively defending his son against detractors, so it's understandable why he and Gottlieb have a frosty relationship.
It likely won't improve soon either, as the NCAA coach will continue getting the platform to dish out these comments.
More must-reads: