'Moron' Megyn Kelly Slammed by Dave Portnoy as They Clash Over Caitlin Clark Not Defending Sophie Cunningham's Transgender Athletes Comments

Barstool Sports founder Dave Portnoy publicly blasted Megyn Kelly as an "absolute moron" for calling Indiana Fever star Caitlin Clark a "coward" after Clark gave a neutral answer regarding teammate Sophie Cunningham's controversial comments on transgender athletes.

The online clash began after Indiana Fever guard Cunningham, whom people dubbed "MAGA Barbie," stated to ESPN that she wanted to "protect young girls" from competing against "biological men,” a stance that drew both heavy criticism and right-wing support in WNBA circles.

When reporters subsequently pressed Clark on the matter following a Sunday, August 2, loss to the Minnesota Lynx, she declined to take a political stance.

Instead, Clark deflected, stating, “I think, for us, it's not really a discussion we really have in our locker room. I think it's for leagues and the governing bodies to work with their athletes to find solutions, but our focus is on basketball."

Kelly reacted furiously to the response on her show and on X, labeling Clark a “coward” for punting on the issue, claiming that as the most famous figure in women's basketball, she has a responsibility to stand up and publicly back Cunningham's position.

Portnoy fired back at Kelly via social media, saying, “Absolute moron/idiot to call Caitlin a coward for this answer. 1st of all, you don’t even know how she feels on this issue, and more importantly, she doesn’t owe it to you or anybody else to be your political talking point. She just wants to play ball. Total coward, cheap shot to call her a coward for not being your puppet.”

Kelly snapped back, saying, “Why don’t you sit this one out since you didn’t even have any idea today 'how big a problem' this is. (Hint: UCLA Law estimates over 120k trans athletes at the HS level.) Understand this, however: if it were your daughter suffering brain damage from a boy posing as a girl, you wouldn’t care how many others there were. One is too many. But watch my show today bc I actually answered your Q civilly and respectfully, unlike your behavior here.”

Kelly’s post was accompanied by a community note clarifying, "The Williams Institute at UCLA Law estimates the total population of trans youth (ages 13-17) in the US, not the number of trans athletes. Their reports estimate 300,000 (2022) to 724,000 (2025) total trans youth, with no estimate for high school athletes.”

Commenters noted that Kelly and her MAGA ilk have frequently told sports figures to stick to sports, saying Kelly should stay in her own lane as well.

“100 percent, Dave. I find it hilarious that pundits want athletes to speak up when it’s talking points they agree with. When it’s not, though, they should ‘shut up and dribble.’ All these political talking heads are so opportunistic,” noted one supporter.

“Caitlin Clark has turned on a whole generation of girls to sports, and @megynkellywants her to weigh in on a non-existent issue in the WNBA. Just stop. Athletes should be allowed to weigh in or not on whatever they choose,” said another.

“People need to relax on Caitlin Clark not wanting to front run political causes. The only critique I have is them all leaving Sophie Cunningham out to dry. But even that doesn't make sense because Cunningham was the one who decided to take the path she did,” noted another.

While Portnoy and Kelly were feuding, the Barstool Sports founder joins Kelly in supporting bans on transgender women competing in female sports categories, stating that biological males "should not be allowed in women's sports" because "they dominate when they go in."