Cavinder Twins Post Lengthy Response to 'Sexist' Story on their NIL Success
They thought a "woman ran news outlet" wouldn't do this.
The Cavinder Twins took to Twitter to post a response to a story they viewed as “sexist.”
The Free Press published a story on June 13 called “The NCAA Has a ‘Hot Girl’ Problem” which focused on the success of Haley and Hanna Cavinder as name, image, likeness athletes going well beyond their on-court skill.
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The story, published by former ESPN and The Athletic writer Ethan Strauss, who has been critical of sports leagues and media in his independent newsletter, explained how the NCAA’s new NIL rules have showcased an issue with regard to those who are able to profit the most.
“Thing is, the athletes now profiting are not necessarily the ones with the most athletic prowess,” Strauss wrote. “Or at least that’s the case when it comes to female athletes.”
The Twins, who announced they were foregoing their final year of eligibility at the University of Miami in April, were previously in the top five of On3’s NIL valuation. Nowadays the top of the list belongs to top stars like Angel Reese, Caitlin Clark, and Hailey Van Lith.
Strauss wrote nearly 3,000 words to support his point. He added anecdotes of a visit to the Cavinder’s Florida home alongside their whole press crew, quotes from an interview with a sports historian, and cited a New York Times interview with Stanford women’s basketball coach Tara VanDerveer that was critical of the Twins.
The Cavinder Twins responded to the article with a tweet statement posted by Hanna a few hours after the article dropped saying the interview was “obtained by a false pretense that it would be written about life after NIL.”
“We were specifically told via the publication the context would be to ‘see the Cavinders as a very important story not only in the context of women’s college sports but new media culture and business,’” the statement wrote in part.
The Twins' statement also said the article “demeaned" their accomplishments as athletes and businesswomen.
"We are both disappointed and disgusted by this journalism practice and blatant sexist trope," the statement read.
Haley retweeted her sister’s statement soon after.
TheStreet reached out to the Cavinder’s agent for comment but did not received a response.
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