Caitlin Clark (Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images)

We are just a few weeks from Caitlin Clark getting selected by the Indiana Fever in the WNBA Draft, and reporters are still making cringeworthy comments when it comes to the increased visibility of the league due to the presence of the former Iowa Hawkeyes superstar.

It’s evident that the WNBA is going all out to make Indiana Fever guard Caitlin Clark the face of their brand, aiming to make as much money as possible while taking full advantage of the situation.

While Clark adjusts to the league, the WNBA is looking for new methods to grow its fan base. This has prompted numerous basketball experts to come up with their own ideas for making the league more exciting.

Bill Simmons, a basketball pundit, featured NBA reporter Ethan Sherwood Strauss on his podcast. They talked about the WNBA and its development possibilities, and Strauss came up with what he believed was a brilliant concept to make the league more enticing.

Strauss, while bringing up Caitlin Clark’s Indiana Fever, wants the WNBA to name franchises after NBA teams in the same city, as is done in college and European sports. The connection to NBA franchises alone would boost ratings, attracting a sizable section of each fandom, but only some were so enthusiastic about the notion.

“One thing they should have done, and maybe there’s still time to do, that they didn’t do from the outset, is just use the same team names,” Strauss began on Bill Simmons Podcast. “Like, why force people to learn about the Fever? Why not just have the W Pacers? I think that just makes it so much easier to just resonate and cut across.”

Here is how social media reacted:

Simmons did not outright agree, but he didn’t disagree either.

“Like in college when they just have the Lady Gamecocks,” Simmons added.

Reporter Got Punished For Awkward Caitlin Clark Exchange

Caitlin Clark (Photo by Michael Hickey/Getty Images)
Gregg Doyel, an Indianapolis Star writer, was suspended and barred from covering Indiana Fever games after an awkward confrontation with rookie guard Caitlin Clark during her introductory news conference last month.

Doyel highlighted Clark’s well-known heart-shaped hand gesture toward her family during games.

“You like that?” Clark responded.

“I like that you’re here, I like that you’re here,” Doyel said before adding, “Start doing it to me and we’ll get along just fine” after she explained she made the gesture to her family.

Doyel is suspended for two weeks and will be unable to attend Fever games this season but will cover the squad remotely.