ESPN’s Elle Duncan Refuses To Apologize For ‘Crude’ Joke originally appeared on The Spun.
ESPN anchor Elle Duncan went viral during this year’s WNBA All-Star Game. That’s because she unleashed a wild joke on national television.
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Duncan has been with ESPN since May of 2016. While she’s best known for her work on “SportsCenter,” there’s no doubt fans also recognize her for her women’s basketball coverage. If she’s not covering the WNBA, she’s helping ESPN put together the best possible package for the NCAA Women’s Basketball Tournament.
Last weekend, sports fans who weren’t so familiar with Duncan learned that she doesn’t have a filter. During ABC’s halftime coverage of the 2025 WNBA All-Star Game, she made a fairly inappropriate joke while standing next to Andraya Carter and Chiney Ogwumike.
“We hope it gets a little bit more competitive,” Duncan said. “Because like a girls trip to Cancun, right now, there’s no D.”
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Countless people criticized Duncan for this joke. Some were so annoyed that they called for her job.
“Elle Duncan is one of the most unlikable individuals I’ve ever seen in sports media,” one fan said.
“All I need to hear is Elle Duncan and gone,” a second fan wrote on X.
“Unfortunately this was unnecessary and forced,” another fan declared.
NEW YORK, NEW YORK – MAY 21: Elle Duncan attends the 45th Annual Sports Emmy Awards at Jazz at Lincoln Center on May 21, 2024 in New York City. (Photo by John Nacion/WireImage)John Nacion/Getty Images
During an appearance on “The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz” this week, Duncan commented on all the outrage over her Cancun joke.
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Duncan made it clear that she’s not goin to apologize.
“My thing with the Cancun joke is, I feel like whenever I say something, it’s like sometimes a reintroduction for some people who clearly don’t know me or my work over the last 10 years,” Duncan explained. “I’m like, ‘Bro, I said on air one time that if you celebrate too early, it’s called premature I’m-Jacked-Elation.’ Like I can’t actually imagine this is worse than that. Like I feel like I constantly have to remind people, I have been saying things like this for the 10 years I have been at ESPN. So I thought it was silly. I thought it was funny. Some people disagree. Some people definitely agree. But it is what it is. Like, yes, girls say crude jokes too.”
It’s safe to say Duncan is going to continue being herself regardless if fans like it or not.
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Related: Elle Duncan Facing Backlash For Inappropriate Comment On ‘SportsCenter’
ESPN’s Elle Duncan Refuses To Apologize For ‘Crude’ Joke first appeared on The Spun on Jul 26, 2025
This story was originally reported by The Spun on Jul 26, 2025, where it first appeared.