On Wednesday Clark received a double technical foul alongside Sun guard Saniya Rivers after the two exchanged words in the third quarter. According to Clark, Rivers told her she was “locking” her up, prompting the Fever guard to respond with a simple “scoreboard.” Officials immediately whistled both players for technical fouls, leaving Clark just one technical away from an automatic one-game suspension.
The decision became a major talking point in the WNBA world, and veteran sports analyst Skip Bayless questioned the whole situation.
“No idea why Caitlin Clark got a tech last night, moving her 1 away from suspension,” Bayless posted on X. “She had 21 at half and Sun started roughing her up in the 3rd. She said Sun’s Rivers said she was locking her up & she yelled back ‘scoreboard.’ Must stand up for herself. That was double tech???”
Bayless’ comments resonated with fans, many showing frustration over the officiating.
“I just can’t watch the games based on how they treat Caitlin. It’s maddening,” one fan wrote.
Another wrote, “Hopefully rescinded soon. Given what she’s been through, it’s the thinnest of reasons to sit her for a game.”
“Hope they rescind both techs. Super weak call on both players. Don’t have much faith tho,” another user commented.
Not everyone agreed with the criticism, however. Some defended the officials.
“The refs can’t win as it relates to CC. If they don’t call a foul, her supporters whine, if they call a foul you say ‘oh that’s unfair.’ Refs tried to put a stop to the tempers escalating by calling both parties evenly,” one fan wrote.
Another compared the WNBA’s officiating standards to the NBA.
“These techs are getting way too soft. Draymond would have 30 plus if he played in the WNBA.”
USA Today Columnist on Caitlin Clark
USA Today columnist Nancy Armour criticized Clark’s on-court behavior in a strongly worded opinion piece.
“Indiana Fever All-Star Caitlin Clark and her enablers must take the rest of us for idiots,” Armour wrote.
“The fouls they claim occurred? The ‘contusion’ she says she suffered? The technicals that aren’t deserved? Clark doesn’t suddenly become invisible when she’s involved in a physical play, so we can see what actually happened.”
“It seems there is a white nationalist faction to Clark’s fandom that is deeply, deeply problematic, made even more so because the WNBA is made up predominantly of Black women, many of them queer. When Clark claims fouls that don’t exist, when she goes on profanity-laced tirades at referees, those racists see her as a white woman in need of saving and take matters into their own hands,” she added.
The column generated widespread debate across social media, with supporters and critics divided over Clark’s relationship with officials and the physical style of play she has faced throughout her WNBA career.
Whether the Fever choose to appeal the technical remains to be seen, but with Clark now sitting one technical foul away from a suspension, every whistle will count from now on.
Also Read:
Saniya Rivers Refuses to Tolerate Caitlin Clark’s ‘Disrespect’ After Heated Exchange in Blowout Loss
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