Political commentator Megyn Kelly was one of numerous conservative media members to blast Caitlin Clark after her answer to a question about how she and her Indiana Fever teammates have responded to the outside noise and WNBA pregame rallies following Sophie Cunningham’s comments about transgender athletes.
“I think, for us, it’s not really a discussion we really have in our locker room,” Clark said during a postgame press conference on Aug. 2. “I think it’s for leagues and the governing bodies to work with their athletes to find solutions, but our focus is on basketball. That’s what we talk about and how we can get wins, and, obviously, we didn’t do that tonight.”
Before a follow-up question from the media could be finished, Clark interjected with, “I just answered for you.”
Clark choosing to stick to sports didn’t go over well with conservative media.
Kelly responded to a video of the press conference clip with a quote-post: “Coward.”
Coward. https://t.co/4ietxcRCj5
— Megyn Kelly (@megynkelly) August 3, 2026
And on Sunday, Colin Cowherd delivered a video essay in response to Kelly referring to Clark as a “coward.”
Sunday thoughts on Megyn Kelly calling Caitlin Clark a “coward” pic.twitter.com/fS3pd7TNWo
— Colin Cowherd (@colincowherd) August 9, 2026
“I don’t know what courage is,” Cowherd began on The Colin Cowherd Podcast at The Volume. “Probably firefighters, police officers, the Coast Guard in rough seas. Political commentary in today’s landscape is rarely courageous. I do respect people who push back against their own establishment. But in media, rarely are people actually brave. Don’t confuse bravery with getting paid. Cable news isn’t Omaha Beach. Podcasters don’t get purple hearts.”
“Megyn Kelly gets paid a lot to talk about big, interesting subjects,” Cowherd continued. “Caitlin Clark plays basketball. And Caitlin Clark did not want to feed into Megyn’s audience this week. Which is fine. Fame isn’t a PHD. Athletes are popular. It doesn’t make them profound. From an accountant to a surgeon, most professionals are busy, hyper-focused on their craft. And politics is now a full-time profession, not an extracurricular activity. It’s a minefield of nuance and complexity, and a minefield Megyn Kelly gets very well paid to walk through daily.
“But I’m not asking a guard to be up to date on the big, beautiful bill or the latest Supreme Court decision. Not their job. And these days, even if you’re politically engaged, you can’t win. Political parties dispute election results. Scientists argue with scientists. You can be completely right, you think about something, and half the country thinks you’re wrong. So, it doesn’t even matter whether you’re right. Public health officials, election workers, school board members these days get death threats. What basketball player wants any part of that?
“Part of what makes a great politician is knowing what they don’t know. That’s also a pretty good quality for human beings. So, we’ve gone from ‘Shut up and dribble’ to ‘You must speak up and dribble’?”
“Politics and sports will always mingle, but they’re different arenas,” Cowherd said. “Quit trying to drag every big-name athlete into your arena. If they want to step into it, fine. And if Caitlin wants to be Bill Bradley someday, great. But she may be more M.J. than LeBron; less interested in leading a movement, and more interested in leading her league. And that’s fine too.”
“And let’s be honest,” Cowherd said in his closing comments. “You’re not really mad at the answer. You’re mad she didn’t give you an answer you could use. She did what she does best- pass. Caitlin owes nobody in the media an assist, especially in a game she never asked to play.”
About Matt Clapp
Matt is an editor/writer at Awful Announcing and The Comeback.
He can be reached by email at mclapp@awfulannouncing.com.