ESPN analyst Monica McNutt revealed she wasn’t too thrilled about the First Take segment that resulted in her heated exchange with Stephen A. Smith last week.
McNutt appeared on The Daily Show on Monday night to talk about the viral moment and its aftermath. According to her, the day was off to a bad start when she was informed that she’d be talking about Chicago Sky guard Chennedy Carter committing a flagrant foul on Indiana Fever guard Caitlin Clark.
“I get the call — or the text, rather — and I’m like, ‘Are we really leading sports with this?'” she told Jon Stewart. “‘Are we really leading sports with a foul?'”
Stewart agreed that the play wasn’t a big deal.
“A person got knocked over in a basketball game!” he said with a shrug.
McNutt ultimately relented and got on with the show. During the segment, she argued that the media played a role in pushing the narrative that the WNBA is actively working against Caitlin Clark out of jealousy. She then called Smith out for not using his platform to elevate the WNBA sooner.
“By the end of the show, Jon, the tone had changed and I just kinda needed to put my foot down a little bit,” she said.
“It was a little bit of a challenge to gentlemen that I admire — in terms of what they’