How Nancy Lieberman reignited the Caitlin Clark-Sheryl Swoopes drama

The Sheryl Swoopes and Caitlin Clark controversy had seemingly died down in recent months, only to come roaring back. Now, there’s a new party involved: Hall of Famer Nancy Lieberman.

To refresh your memory, Swoopes has been taking heat since 2023 over her thoughts regarding Clark breaking her NCAA single tournament scoring record. It didn’t get any better in 2024 when Swoopes made inaccurate comments on a Gilbert Arenas podcast regarding Clark’s pursuit of Kelsey Plum’s NCAA scoring record.

Things got so out of hand over several weeks that fans made “Don’t Be A Sheryl” (and “Be a Sheryl”) shirts, voicing their opinions on the matter. Days later, Swoopes revealed that she apologized to Clark and said Clark’s decision to go to the WNBA was good for basketball.

That was seemingly the end of it, and despite the awkwardness of Swoopes interviewing Clark during a Dallas Wings preseason game, the two were amicable, and that was that — until it wasn’t. Swoopes’ recent comments about Clark and the Indiana Fever have ruffled feathers with fans, turning the whole saga back on.

Here’s everything we know about the Sheryl Swoopes-Caitlin Clark-Nancy Lieberman drama:

Hoops fans become enraged over a perceived Caitlin Clark slight by Sheryl Swoopes

During an August episode of Swoopes’s podcast, Swoopes and her co-host Jordan Robinson discussed how the Olympic break helped the Fever. As the conversation continued, Swoopes did not mention Clark in the list of players she named as reasons why the Fever were playing so well.

That enraged Fever and Clark fans — who were already miffed over Swoopes’s comments during another podcast episode in July. (On the episode, Swoopes made the claim that the Fever would be in the playoffs without Clark because of the stars they have on the roster. But, according to Robinson, many missed the full context of the conversation and the moment Swoopes went on to praise Clark.)

Swoopes’ perceived lack of acknowledgment got the attention of Stephen A. Smith, who traded jabs with Swoopes over her assessment.

Sheryl Swoopes’ lack of recognition for Caitlin Clark during a broadcast fans flames

Things got worse when fans noticed that Swoopes did not say anything about Clark during an Aces-Wings broadcast when she and Napheesa Collier were recognized as Players of the Week. (It’s worth noting that Collier was also not recognized by Swoopes.)

Chatter immediately began gaining traction in hoops circles. Days later, when the Wings played the Fever, Swoopes was not on the broadcast team and was replaced by her colleague, Nancy Lieberman.

Nancy Lieberman pays tribute to Caitlin Clark and what she has done for the WNBA

Lieberman was on the call as the Fever and Wings played a back-and-forth thriller on September 1. During the game, Lieberman took a moment to share her thoughts about critics of Clark. Here’s what she said:

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This article originally appeared on For The Win: How Nancy Lieberman reignited the Caitlin Clark-Sheryl Swoopes drama