Rob Gronkowski has sent a message to Caitlin Clark, telling her to "keep balling" and keep "shutting up the haters" as the Indiana Fever guard continues to navigate a turbulent WNBA season.
The four-time Super Bowl-winning tight end reached out to Clark in an interview with Fox News, praising the 24-year-old for how she has handled the scrutiny surrounding her third year in the league.
Clark's Season of Controversy
Clark has been at the centre of multiple incidents this season. Earlier in the summer, Phoenix Mercury star Alyssa Thomas moved her fist towards Clark's neck, an action that led to a one-match suspension from the WNBA.
Republican lawmakers also attempted to use Clark's name for political advantage, with a committee sending a letter to WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert warning that a federal investigation could be launched if the guard was not given greater protection.
Emotional Toll
Ahead of the All-Star game in Chicago, Clark admitted the media attention had left her exhausted. Speaking to ESPN, she said: "It's basketball. When I walk out of the locker room, I shouldn't be fearful of what the conversation is going to be, but you know, it's emotionally exhausting. It's draining."
She added: "It makes your shoulders tense because... people don't want to talk about the basketball, they just want to stir it up and make it something else."
Gronkowski's Advice
Gronkowski, however, has been impressed by Clark's composure. "She's doing a great job handling herself. She really is. I'm not in her shoes. I'm not in her situation. If I was, though, I would kind of handle it very similar to how she's handling it. She really is doing a great job," he told Fox News.
"I would just say one piece of advice: Keep balling because if you keep balling, you're going to keep shutting up the haters."
Praise for Teammates
Gronkowski also noted the support Clark receives from her Indiana Fever team-mates. "What I do appreciate, what she's going to need to help with is her teammates," he added.
"That's who's going to lift you up. If you've got your teammates protecting you, that says a lot right there. It really does. And she does. Her team does pick her up. They protect her as well, and that's huge."
"That says a lot about your personality and about who you are throughout the season, how you practice, how you prepare, is that if your teammates are behind you, you know that doing the right things."
League Protection
The former New England Patriots star also spoke about the WNBA stepping in to shield Clark from physical treatment, saying: "I think she's going to be the face eventually, like truly where the WNBA steps in, and they're like, 'OK, like enough of all this wishwashing that's going on with her and the punishment that she's taking out on the basketball court.'"
"Let's truly make her face of the league. I think I would say it once she keeps balling out and also wins something pretty significant."
