Shaquille O'Neal says WNBA players' treatment of Caitlin Clark is a rite of passage

NBA great Shaquille O’Neal told CNBC he thinks Caitlin Clark is facing a rite of passage that “all the greats went through” as the Indiana Fever guard navigates her third season in the WNBA.

“Once she passes through that, the league will belong to her,” O’Neal said during a CNBC Sport interview on the set of his show, “Dunkman.”

Clark has been the target of some harsh fouls that include hip checks, eye pokes and a recent blow to the throat. That, combined with league officiating, has spurred national debate and even prompted some lawmakers to seek “accountability” from the league for its handling of behavior against Clark.

O’Neal said he experienced similar treatment during his playing days and that he watched the same take place with basketball legends such as Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant, LeBron James and Magic Johnson and with boxer Muhammad Ali.

“All the greats have to go through what we call rites of passage. She’s a fabulous player, but we’re not giving you anything, ever. You have to earn it,” O’Neal said. “So for her, she needs to toughen up, take those licks, and show them that, ‘These licks don’t bother me.'”

Three-time WNBA champion Diana Taurasi, who played 20 seasons in the league, recently disputed the idea that the game has become more physical.

“If you think the game is physical now, go back and watch the girls’ Finals 15 [or] 16 years ago,” she said, speaking at the CNBC Sport x Boardroom Game Plan Summit last month.

The physical play against Clark intensified on June 24, with a hit to the throat from Phoenix Mercury forward Alyssa Thomas. No foul was called on the play, but following widespread criticism, the league reviewed the play and Thomas received a one-game suspension for “recklessly making contact with her fist to the throat area.”

On July 3, Clark addressed the incident, saying the “reffing needs to be better” and the “league’s just gotta do better protecting players.”

“Ultimately, the issues around Caitlin Clark are not largely about officiating,” NBA Commissioner Adam Silver said at the July Game Plan event. “She’s become a bit of a political football in this country, and I think that’s incredibly unfair to her.”

O’Neal said that Clark has to continue to prove herself to the other players in the league.

“There’s a lot of other girls with similar skills, who get no play, who get no mention, and there’s jealousy – professional jealousy,” he said.

The three-time All-Star has already become the fastest player to hit 1,000 points, 250 rebounds and 250 assists — in just 54 career games, breaking Taurasi’s previous record of 62 games.

On July 17, she scored a career-high 45 points against the Seattle Storm.

“Keep doing that, and the rites of passage will start to open up, and they will invite you in and give you the throne,” O’Neal said.