Indiana Fever guard Sophie Cunningham became one of the first teammates to speak out strongly against the WNBA and the referees’ treatment of Caitlin Clark on Saturday.
It came after Clark was struck in the throat by Connecticut Sun forward Alyssa Thomas. The play initially went uncalled by the officials on the floor. However, the league cracked down on the reckless play a day later, upgrading it to a Flagrant 2 foul and issuing a one-game suspension.
Cunningham, who has been a prominent and vocal critic of Clark, addressed the incident on her podcast, “Show Me Something,” and claimed there has been a general reluctance from the WNBA to give Clark a fair whistle.
“During real time, I didn’t see that happen. None of our team saw it happen, because I promise you if we would have seen that happen, we would have had her back,” Cunningham said. “Unfortunately, this happens every single game to her, and the league and the refs do absolutely nothing about it.”
She then went on to label Thomas’s play as a “cheap shot,” explicitly stating that opponents are “targeting” the Indiana Fever star on the court. She also alleged that the league failed to offer protection.
“You see the videos of, like, literally kneeing and cheapshoting C [Clark] in the throat. Like if she did that to any of our teammates, we’d be pissed. But they’re definitely targeting her, and the league and the refs do nothing to protect her.”
Fans can dispute the player safety process, but the proof of how “reckless” the play was is right there on video for all to see. The WNBA game is a physical one, but for a player like Caitlin Clark, whose major offensive weapon is to shoot from deep, which in general attracts far less physicality than a jump shot or layup from a short range. But the Fever guard moves a lot all over the court and still doesn’t receive favorable calls from the referees, which is something they need to be cautious about going forward.
Sophie Cunningham rips WNBA for leaving Caitlin Clark off anniversary poster
Sophie Cunningham also blasted the WNBA for downplaying Caitlin Clark’s impact by excluding her from its 30th anniversary poster.
“This is a joke,” Cunningham said. “And this is why Cathy Engelbert and the WNBA are getting lit up on social media, because you are leaving out a generational talent – the best player to ever go through the WNBA – on this roster. Like, honestly, if they were smart, they would market some of us. They don’t. They don’t… Why are we putting random players on there? I’m one of them.”
The poster includes some of the league’s top stars, including a surprised Cunningham. However, leaving Clark off the poster is just another example of the league failing to market its biggest star.
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Mercury Coach Slams WNBA’s Alyssa Thomas Suspension Process After Caitlin Clark Incident
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