Fever G Caitlin Clark “addressed the harassment and hatred professional athletes and coaches face online” and “expressed frustrations with individuals using her name ‘in ways that are inappropriate’” following an in-game incident with Mercury F Alyssa Thomas, according to Brian Haenchen of the INDIANAPOLIS STAR. Clark said, “The harassment, the hate -- none of that is OK. That goes for the opposing teams we play, my teammates (and) my coaches. There should never be a question of character.” Haenchen wrote the discourse around the “inciting incident” has “spiraled out of control.” Clark: “The frustrating part is it seems like everyone wants a click. You (the media) have a job to do. ... But at the same time, that’s all you’re going to talk about?” She added, “We’ve done so much to improve the product of the game over the past three years ... we keep ... kicking ourselves when we’re down and that stinks” (INDIANAPOLIS STAR, 7/3). In Boston, Dan Shaughnessy wrote the WNBA “needs someone with the skills of the late [NBA Commissioner] David Stern to fix things.” Commissioner Cathy Engelbert “certainly is not up to the task.” Shaughnessy: “Only the WNBA could feature a generational, smart, talented, marquee player such as the Fever’s Clark and have it devolve into a raging hot-button crisis that’s got many players and executives around the league afraid to talk about anything.” Clark is “great for TV ratings and everybody’s salary potential, but doesn’t seem wildly popular among her peers” (BOSTON GLOBE, 7/3).
Clark denounces online abuse following Thomas incident
