Indiana Fever coach Stephanie White announced on Friday that franchise superstar Caitlin Clark will miss Saturday’s game against the Los Angeles Sparks.
Clark tweaked her back on Wednesday after landing on the foot of Phoenix Mercury’s Valériane Ayayi. The opposing teams’ physicality is starting to take a toll on the two-time All-Star, prompting legendary broadcaster Dick Vitale to defend Clark.
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Dick Vitale Issues Strong Response to Caitlin Clark’s Treatment by WNBA Opponents
White called two plays against Clark on Wednesday “cheap shots.” The first one, which happened midway through the second quarter, was a fist on the Fever point guard’s throat by Mercury star Alyssa Thomas.
In the postgame press conference, White expressed frustration that the referees didn’t even call a foul on Thomas. She ripped the officials, calling the play and them “disrespectful.”
The second one occurred before the first half ended. Clark landed on the foot of Ayayi, who didn’t give her enough room to land. Under WNBA rules, a landing space violation warranted a Flagrant-1 foul.
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The referees, upon review, upheld the common foul call.
Clark, who grabbed her back after the play, stayed on the floor before eventually leaving for good in the third quarter.
Two days after White lambasted the officials, it was Vitale’s turn to criticize the officiating and the physical play from Clark’s opponents.
“It is amazing that @CaitlinClark22, who has brought so much publicity for the @WNBA, has to take so much abuse from many of those that she has helped financially since her arrival . The physical pounding she takes is totally UNACCEPTABLE!” the basketball Hall of Famer tweeted.
The WNBA reviewed the Mercury-Fever game and announced a suspension and a $1,000 fine for Thomas, deeming the veteran’s play a “non-basketball act.”
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She will serve the suspension on Saturday against the Toronto Tempo. The league did not include the Clark-Ayayi play in its press release, so the common foul decision was upheld.
The physical play by opposing players against Clark is well-documented.
The Ringer’s Seerat Sohi, in her podcast on Thursday, enumerated some of the cheap shots the 6-foot guard has endured since her 2024 rookie season.
Sohi mentioned the hip check from former Chicago Sky guard Chennedy Carter against Clark in June 2024. Carter’s hit, ruled a common foul, was later upgraded to a Flagrant 1 infraction.
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The WNBA analyst included then-Connecticut Sun guard Marina Mabrey’s shove against Clark in June 2025. Mabrey received a technical foul before the league upgraded it to a Flagrant 2 violation a day after the incident.
With the “physical pounding” against Clark continuing to be an issue, the WNBA and the players might be careful not to cause further harm to their star.
