Monica McNutt & Stephen A Smith – Source: Kristina Bumphrey/Stephanie Augello/Getty
Monica McNutt joined Nightcap to explain her WNBA rant from ESPN’s First Take where she stunned and silenced Stephen A. Smith.
On Monday, June 3, Monica McNutt joined ESPN First Take and with one rant etched herself into the history of the WNBA’s growth story.
During her segment on the show, she put a muzzle on Stephen A. Smith like many longtime fans of the WNBA want to do to new fans who’ve given insane takes on the way Caitlin Clark has been treated and forget that the WNBA is a physical sport.
According to Sports Illustrated, McNutt refused to let Stephen A. Smith rewrite history on his WNBA coverage in real-time and she called him out directly.
“Who talks about the WNBA, who talks about women’s sports more than First Take?” asked Stephen A.
“Stephen A., respectfully, with your platform you could’ve been doing this three years ago if you wanted to,” replied McNutt.
She continued,
“Stephen A., I’m talking to you. Don’t do that. I’m talking to you about the power that you have,” McNutt responded.
“OK, OK. I got it. You’re my girl, but you missed a lot episodes of First Take. You missed a lot,” said Stephen A. Smith.
“Stephen A., three years ago you would not talk about the WNBA at this level. Don’t do that,” McNutt concluded.
Moderator Molly Qerim quickly sprung into action to change the subject before tensions flared past an acceptable level, but Stephen A. Smith wasn’t done, and he took to YouTube to respond. According to the host, he deserves credit for Monica McNutt and several other female analysts getting national television coverage.
“To address Monica McNutt’s point, I found it very unfortunate that she would say that,” Smith began. “Ladies and gentlemen, I am the executive producer of First Take. You ever heard of Monica McNutt? You have now. Because she’s on First Take a lot. Chiney Ogwumike, absolutely wonderful, spectacular basketball analyst. … ask her how it’s been to be on First Take.
“How about Andraya Carter who’s a rising star in this business, how much do you think First Take helped that? What about Kimberley Martin? What about Molly Qerim herself?”
Monica McNutt Addresses Back-And-Forth With Stephen A. Smith, WNBA Rookies
On Monday, McNutt joined Shannon Sharpe and Chad Ochocino’s Nightcap to give her side of the situation and to speak on WNBA rookies like Caitlin Clark. McNutt argued that any rookie with a shoe deal before playing a professional game is going to face obstacles and jealousy from their peers. She even expressed that “we can hold more than one truth” explaining several things can be right in the discourse.
“I think in Caitlin’s debut or since she made her debut, there’s been a large and loud clamor or push, yes, that it’s been Caitlin versus the WNBA,” said McNutt. “And that is unfair to me. Jealous? Yeah, sure. Wouldn’t you be jealous of somebody who got $28 million, a shoe deal, or whatever the deal is, before you step foot in the Pros?”
Monica also pointed out LeBron James faced the same behavior and no one called for rules to be changed or for “softer play” to take place.
You can watch the full Nightcap segment with Monica below.