Stephen Jackson and Gayle King

Retired NBA player Stephen Jackson went on X/Twitter to share his thoughts on TV personality and journalist Gayle King, who recently told SC head coach Dawn Staley that she was rooting for Iowa and Caitlin Clark in the NCAAW title game.

The $20 million-worth (via Celebrity Net Worth) former NBA champion criticized King, saying that she “disrespected” Staley with her comment:

“So, Gayle King`s supposed to be somebody that`s big in the journalism space, right? And I don`t consider [her] black media. Y`all give her all these passes [sic] because she`s Oprah`s friend. I don`t give a f— whose friend she is. But you cannot demean Dawn Staley like that.”

Jackson continues:

“You`re talking to her about winning the championship, about going undefeated. And you had the nerve to get on there and say, we was rooting for Caitlin Clark and you broke everybody`s hearts. Who is we? All the black people [were] rooting for Dawn Staley. We`re all fans of Caitlin Clark, but the way you put it, she was trash.”

The thing that Stephen Jackson was referring to happened during a CBS Mornings interview with South Carolina head coach Dawn Staley, a day after the Gamecocks won the national championship. In the interview, Gayle King asked Staley:

“Was there ever a point in the game when you were worried? Cause I got worried? We were all cheering for Iowa, of course, and Caitlin Clark, but for so many people you got their hearts.

Staley just replied with a simple answer, saying she was never worried about the game and merely explained their strategy for their comeback after being down by double-digits early. Either way, Stephen Jackson`s comments have made the rounds online, and it`s gotten people talking.

Despite all, Dawn Staley has nothing but love for Caitlin Clark

Right after South Carolina won the national championship, Staley was still giving Iowa and Clark props, as expected of somebody of her reputation. In an interview on CNBC with her former star player and WNBA third overall pick Kamilla Cardoso, the Gamecocks head coach called Caitlin Clark a “superstar” and was positively gushing about her impact on the women`s game:

“Caitlin Clark is a superstar. I credit her with raising the level, we`re creating more eyeballs on our sport, and we need to thank her for that. People think I`m being facetious when I say that, I`m not. I`m all for the greater good of our game, if she`s a big part of it, we need to find the next superstar that will take our game to the next level.”