WNBA: Caitlin Clark is Targeted Because She’s White and Straight
Outrage erupted across the basketball world after Indiana Fever superstar Caitlin Clark took what critics called a brutal cheap shot during Wednesday night’s 111-109 loss to the Phoenix Mercury — a game Clark was forced to leave in the third quarter with a back injury.
The play that sparked the firestorm came in the second quarter when Clark drove into the lane, fell to the court and became tangled with Mercury players. Video appeared to show Phoenix star Alyssa Thomas punching Clark’s neck with a closed fist before stepping over her. No foul was called.
Fever head coach Stephanie White unloaded on officials after the game, saying the no-call was indefensible. “It was egregious. The fact that it was a no-call … You got to call it,” White said. “Absolutely unacceptable.”
White said Clark is not being protected the way other players are, calling the contact to her neck especially alarming. “The fist in the throat is crazy. It’s crazy. It’s dangerous,” White said.
Radio host Todd Starnes called out the WNBA and demanded they start taking action against players who are targeting white athletes.
“Female basketball players who are straight and white should seriously consider whether they want to risk their lives playing in the WNBA,” Starnes said. “Clearly, it is open season on straight, white women. What happened to Caitlin Clark was nothing short of a hate crime. At this point is it safe for white players to be in the WNBA?”
The backlash spread quickly beyond the WNBA. Former NFL MVP and WFAN radio host Boomer Esiason said Clark should consider leaving the league if officials will not protect her.
“If I were Caitlin Clark, I would seriously consider going to play overseas somewhere and get royal treatment,” Esiason said, adding, “And get real money.”
Esiason said he believes jealousy is fueling some of the hostility toward Clark. “She is not being treated with any sort of respect whatsoever,” he said.
Former NFL quarterback Robert Griffin III also blasted the treatment of Clark, writing, “Caitlin Clark and every WNBA player should be protected from this targeted behavior.”
Former WNBA player and NFL reporter Stacey Dales called it a defining moment for the league. “Tonight was a pivotal moment in Caitlin Clark’s season and career,” Dales wrote. “It’s time the league takes notice and adjusts. It impacts a franchise.”
Barstool Sports founder Dave Portnoy was even more blunt: “What are we even doing here? Brutal cheap shot,” he wrote. “Insane.”