ESPN Gets Major Backlash for Cooper Flagg-Caitlin Clark 'White American' Rant

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ESPN Gets Major Backlash for Cooper Flagg-Caitlin Clark 'White American' Rant originally appeared on Athlon Sports.
Over the last few days, ESPN has taken considerable lumps for the way it covered the 2025 NBA draft, packed as it was with uncomfortable moments marked by more shouting than analysis.
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When it was over on Friday morning, ESPN was still at it, raising rancor among fans with an especially questionable comparison on one of its top shows. Speaking on "First Take," Peter Rosenberg of the "Don, Hahn and Rosenberg Show" on ESPN Radio noted that No. 1 overall pick Cooper Flagg was going to make the Mavericks the most intriguing team in the NBA because he is white and American.
Rosenberg pointed out that there has not been a top white American prospect in the NBA draft since Larry Bird in the late 1970s. While that is true, Rosenberg was already on shaky ground, given that the NBA has exploded in popularity over the past 40 years mostly because of four players: Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant, LeBron James and most recently Stephen Curry.
All four American, and all four Black.
But Rosenberg really stepped in it when he compared the impact of Flagg to the impact Caitlin Clark is having on the WNBA.
Said Rosenberg: "Cooper Flagg is a white guy, maybe the best white American prospect since Larry Bird. Let's not act as if we don't live in America and we're not seeing what's happening with Caitlin Clark in the WNBA.
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"Cooper Flagg is going to be an instant impact player in the NBA. I think Danny (Green) will agree, he is ready to go, that kid can play right now. If he's nearly as good as people expect, I think when it comes to intrigue, actual intrigue that people are talking about day to day, no one's going to be more intriguing or get more eyeballs than what Cooper Flagg's doing in Dallas."
Cooper Flagg (left) and Caitlin ClarkGrace Smith/IndyStar / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images, and Jerome Miron-Imagn Images
Rosenberg is 0-for-2 on the points made. Viewers were quick to point it out. First, there is the Clark assertion, which fails to acknowledge that some of the biggest stars in that league have been white, including Elena Della Donne and Breanna Stewart, a pair who combined for four of the past 10 WNBA MVP awards.
One fan wrote, "People like Caitlin Clark because of how she plays. Why do people act like Caitlin Clark is the 1st white star in the WNBA?!?"
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Jared Smith of Fox Sports Radio, noted, "1) Caitlin Clark isn't getting attention because she's white, she's getting attention because she's a generational talent 2) Cooper Flagg is intriguing because he's the best college basketball player we've seen in a long time Why does ESPN always have to make it about race?"
And second, there is the notion that Flagg will be intriguing because he's a good player, just as 2023 No. 1 pick Victor Wembanyama (who is black and French) is intriguing because he, too, is good.
Former ESPN writer Chris Palmer wrote, "Ugh. This is so dumb. Flagg and Clark are popular because they are incredible basketball players. That's it. They pay people to do this?"
And maybe the most salient point came from this user, who noted that perhaps ESPN should have less Rosenberg, whose main beat is wrestling: "The last thing First Take needs is Peter Rosenberg."
This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jun 28, 2025, where it first appeared.