Bernice King calls Linda Cohn’s A’ja Wilson commentary ‘dangerous,’ demands apology
TheGrio...
Bernice King is demanding a public apology from Linda Cohn after the commentator suggested A’ja Wilson skipped the World Cup out of insecurity over Caitlin Clark.
Bernice King has entered a debate that started with a question about A’ja Wilson’s absence and escalated into something considerably larger.
The dispute began when former ESPN personality Linda Cohn speculated on her show about why the four-time WNBA MVP withdrew from Team USA’s FIBA World Cup roster.
Rather than accepting the reported health explanation, Cohn floated an alternative, asking whether Wilson simply didn’t want to spend weeks watching the tournament become a Caitlin Clark showcase, and raising the possibility of “insecurity.”
Wilson had been dealing with a lingering back issue and appeared on Las Vegas Aces injury reports in late August. According to Yahoo Sports, Cohn was unpersuaded, pointing to Wilson’s recent minutes load and noting she played more than 30 minutes in six of her final seven games while missing an earlier contest the Aces attributed to rest rather than injury.
King, who leads the King Center, responded on Threads, demanding that Cohn offer Wilson a public apology and retraction, calling the remarks “disappointing, delusional, and dangerous commentary targeting a great ambassador and GOAT athlete.”
View on Threads
Her framing carries weight for those who have watched a familiar dynamic take shape around the WNBA, where the league’s most decorated Black stars are routinely positioned as resentful of a white rookie’s popularity rather than evaluated on their own considerable accomplishments. Cohn’s speculation slotted neatly into that pattern, which is precisely what drew journalists and fans into the pile-on against her.
The on-court situation has complicated the argument somewhat. Clark opened strong in Berlin with 14 points and 11 assists in a 94-61 win over China, then struggled badly against Italy, held to a single point on 0-for-6 shooting in a 55-52 escape. Analyst Jason Whitlock argued Team USA visibly missed Wilson’s interior presence against physical defenses.
Kara Lawson’s squad has secured a quarterfinal berth regardless and closes group play against Czechia.