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Veteran sports analyst Jason Whitlock criticized the new pregame show, which will feature former WNBA champion Renee Montgomery and South Carolina Gamecocks coach Dawn Staley as analysts.
On Wednesday, USA Today's Megan Hall reported on X that CBS Sports would debut "WNBA Tip Off" ahead of the network's first nationally-televised regular season game.
Whitlock retweeted Hall's post and shared his dislike of Montgomery and Staley as analysts, citing their history with Indiana Fever star Caitlin Clark.
"Renee Montgomery called Caitlin Clark fans racist. Dawn Staley says losing to Clark made her question God. Perfect hosts for pregame show for a league dependent on Caitlin Clark. You can't make this stuff up," Whitlock wrote.
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According to Hall's post, "WNBA Tip Off" will be hosted by Sarah Kustok. It will be first televised before Saturday's game between the Fever and Angel Reese's Chicago Sky.
The show is also scheduled on July 12 before the Las Vegas Aces versus Golden State Valkyries game, the Fever-Sky rematch on Aug. 9 and the rematch of last year's WNBA Finals between the New York Liberty and the Minnesota Lynx on Aug. 16.
What were Renee Montgomery's remarks against Caitlin Clark's fans?
Renee Montgomery, who is also the vice president and part owner of the Atlanta Dream, bluntly called out a section of Caitlin Clark's fans in the Sept. 17 episode of her "Montgomery & Company" podcast.
"Besides the bots, I don't even think some of (Clark's) faux fans actually even watch her games," Montgomery said. "And it doesn't even seem like it's about Caitlin anymore, the stans. Like, it doesn't even seem like they care what goes on in the basketball aspect. They're just there on social media, ready to fight, OK?"
The two-time WNBA champion added that she is not singling out all of Clark's fans:
"Y'all are straight, like (I) love it, support your player. I'm speaking on a particular group that is motivated by hate and destruction and, if that's not you, then this is not about you."
Dawn Staley claims the 2023 loss to Caitlin Clark made her question God
In Tuesday's "Higher Learning," Dawn Staley revealed that one of the "toughest" losses of her legendary career was the 2023 Final Four loss against Caitlin Clark and the Iowa Hawkeyes. Iowa won 77-73 to eliminate the South Carolina Gamecocks.
"We had a great team, they did all the right things, great people, great competitors," Staley said. "So, I wanted them to win. I wanted them to go off with a bang. And when that didn’t happen, they were hurt and that hurt me. That hurt me to my core.
"Now, it didn’t hurt me enough to didn't think there was a God. But I did question - 'Hey, why? I need to know why. He knows why.' But the answer to the why happened a year later. I can show you better than I can tell you. So He left me, God left me, on the why. And then followed it up and I had no words, besides 'uncommon favors.'"
A year after their Final Four loss, Staley got her revenge as the Gamecocks defeated the Hawkeyes in the national championship game.
