"NBA right now is so soft": Popular college hoop analyst drops bold take on $3.1M NIL-valued Caitlin Clark's potential future as a pro

Caitlin Clark's brilliance in women’s college basketball in the last couple of seasons is undeniable. She’s arguably the best female to ever play the game on the collegiate level, and the level of attention she’s received recently for her performance has been mind-blowing.

There’s been a lot of opinion on the $3.1M NIL-valued Caitlin Clark lately as she rounds up her collegiate career at Iowa. The one that has pretty much caught the most attention is the belief that the point guard can play in the NBA, as Fox Sports Radio analyst Rob Parker said amid the BIG3’s $5 million offer.

"I am convinced that Caitlin Clark should play for an NBA team, not a WNBA team. This is not a stunt like Eddie Gaedel with the White Sox...this is not a sideshow, this is not the bearded lady at the circus. The NBA right now is so soft as far as physical play.”

“They allow almost anyone to just take three-point shots and I believe that she could put up threes in this man’s NBA. This is not 2004; this is not the 90’s, this is an NBA where the three-ball is open.

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Does Shaquille O’Neal share the same view on Caitlin Clark?

Shaquille O'Neal obviously played a role in spreading and fuelling talks on Rob Parker's opinion. The Hall of Famer shared a video of Parker making this opinion on his Instagram. This has made many believe he holds the same view about Caitlin Clark.

However, O'Neal did not include a quote of his own in the post, and it won't be accurate to believe he considers that as a possibility.

Nonetheless, Big Shaq is a great admirer of Clark. He previously praised her after she broke the women's scoring record.

“She’s incredible,” O’Neal said on a TNT broadcast. “Congratulations to her and her family. The greatest thing is I’m just seeing her last year when they played LSU. She’s phenomenal. I’m gonna go on the record and say she’s the best female collegiate player ever.”

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Has a woman ever been drafted into the NBA?

While the possibility of Caitlin Clark in the NBA is zero to none at the moment, the league has a history of women getting drafted. This has happened on two separate occasions.

Denise Long was the first woman in the NBA after she was drafted by the San Francisco Warriors (now Golden State Warriors) in 1969. Lusia Harris joined her in 1977 when she was selected by the New Orleans Jazz (now Utah Jazz). Neither Long nor Harris appeared in an NBA game.