The beef between Ryan Clark and Robert Griffin III, explained: from the Caitlin Clark vs. Angel Reese debate to personal jabs

Robert Griffin III and Ryan Clark are in a heated dispute. The two sports analysts disagreed over the Angel Reese–Caitlin Clark controversy. If you’re not familiar, there is a debate over whether the two WNBA stars actually hate each other, and whether or not the media has blown up the rivalry to be bigger than it is and created a race war.

RG3 suggested that Reese indeed “hates” Clark, but on “The Pivot” podcast, Ryan Clark accused RG3 of lacking understanding about the struggles of Black women, suggesting he doesn’t have those conversations at home since he’s been married to white women.

The RG3-Ryan Clark beef: Who said what

The Indiana Fever and Chicago Sky kicked off the WNBA season on Saturday with a game against each other and there was a slight altercation between Clark and Reese on the court. At the end of the game, both players brushed it off and moved past it, but they were the only ones who did. Everyone else seemed to have an opinion on whether or not these two women actually have beef with each other or not. RG3 believes they do. Clark believes they don’t. So Clark discredited RG3’s views.

“When RG3 jumps onto the hate train or the angry train, it now follows what we saw from Keith Olbermann, what we saw from Dave Portnoy, as they poured onto Angel Reese to make her the villain, and Caitlin Clark heroic or hero story,” Clark said. “The one thing we know about RG3 is he’s not having conversations at his home about what Black women have to endure in this country. About what young Black women and athletes like Angel Reese have had to deal with being on the opposite side of Caitlin Clark’s rise and ascension into stardom.”

“If you’re RG3, when is the last time within your household you’ve had a conversation about what [Angel Reese is] dealing with?” Clark added. “You haven’t been able to do that because in both of your marriages, you’ve been married to white women.”

That did not sit well with RG3, who responded on social media with a video and long written post, accusing Clark of making personal attacks and crossing a line by bringing his family into a sports debate. He also defended his take on the Reese-Clark debacle.

“Ryan Clark didn’t like my take on Angel Reese hating Caitlin Clark. That’s fine,” said RG3. “Disagreement is part of the game. But instead of debating my point, he personally attacked me and my family. That shows how low of person he is.”

“I gave a sports opinion: I said Angel Reese hates Caitlin Clark, based on repeated, visible actions on the court and in press conferences,” he went on. “I backed it up with five separate examples from the game of basketball because that’s what I do. I analyze sports. I stay in the arena. Just because Angel Reese is Black doesn’t mean that her game and actions can not be critiqued. A Black man or woman is not restricted from giving a sports opinion on another Black man or woman just because you don’t like it.”

“We’ve got to be better in this space,” he said. “Debate the game. Don’t play with people’s families. Because if you need to cross that line and attack the person and their family instead of the point just to win an argument, then you already lost.”

RG3 went on to defend his alleged lack of knowledge on Black women’s struggles simply because he’s married to a white woman.

“There should be no space in Sports Media for personal attacks and wives and children are always off limits. You attacked me and my family in a public forum on a level that shows how low of a person you are. Disagree with me all you want. Challenge my take. But keep my family and wife out of it. That’s a boundary that should always be respected. Ryan Clark personally attacking me and my family personally over a sports opinion is cowardly, spineless, and weak. Ryan Clark personally attacking me and my family personally over a sports opinion is a bad look for ESPN and for him as a man.”

Clark fired back on social media, accusing RG3 of being both “phony” as a person and a poor teammate “on the field and on TV”, hinting that there may be even more behind-the-scenes tension between them that we don’t know about.

“I urged people to let you be you. No matter how corny, how bad a teammate you were I had your back,” Clark wrote. “What did you do? Invite someone on your show you know I don’t fool with to ask questions about me, and then hit me weeks later to tell me you’re gonna challenge one of my takes! You’re a phony bro. One of the worst teammates I ever had both on the field and in TV. You gotta do what you gotta do.”

“I didn’t attack your wife. I spoke on what you do on social media and TV. Like I said. I met your wife and she seemed like a lovely lady that was worth more than the color of her skin! You be good bruh,” Clark said.

Clark so far has had the last word, posting on X that he’s not worried about the issue: “Know exactly who I am, what I said, why I said it, & who I said it for! I can live with everything else.”

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