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For the first time since she exited the Indiana Fever's June 24 game against the Phoenix Mercury with a back injury, Caitlin Clark met with the media on Friday.
Clark revealed that she will be sidelined again for the Fever's Sunday game at the Las Vegas Aces. The Fever superstar also shared her first comments on and reaction to the play with Alyssa Thomas that resulted in Thomas receiving a Flagrant Foul 2 penalty and a one-game suspension.
Thomas said this week that she has received death threats and been subjected to racial slurs since the incident.
Clark gave a lengthy five-minute plus opening statement, where she said the WNBA and its referees need to improve and where she also condemned any fan harassment of Thomas.
"As I've stood up here and said before, the harassment, the hate, none of that is OK. That goes for the opposing team we play, that goes for my teammates, that goes for my coaches. There should never be question of character. I've always stood up here and said that and that's truly what I believe, that's how I was raised. None of that is OK and I don't want anybody to ever experience that.
"I think it can be really frustrating to me at times. I think it's difficult. I think a lot of people sometimes think I'm a robot. I'm not a robot. I have emotions. I have feelings. And it can be really difficult to go through a lot of that. I'm 24 years old trying to navigate a lot... I've been in this world for four years now and you would never change any of it, but there are times that it is hard and there are times that it probably affects me a little bit more than I do put on. I would never change any of that for the world, but I think it's important that people do remember that part of it, too," Clark said.
During the second quarter of its June 24 game against the Mercury, Clark drove the paint, lost her footing and fell to the floor. As Clark scrambled to pass the basketball out to teammate Aliyah Boston, Thomas came over defensively and put her fist into Clark's throat. Upon its postgame review, the WNBA deemed it as a non-basketball act by Thomas.
A third-year pro, Clark said she did think it was a flagrant by Thomas.
"I did think it was a flagrant foul and our reffing just needs to be better. It's tough. Obviously the refs are in a really difficult spot. It's one of the hardest jobs in the world in my opinion is to make calls. All you do is get yelled at the whole time by everybody. You're never winning.
"So, I think for us, the league's just got to do better protecting our players in that regard. I don't really think that it was up for debate. Obviously, it wasn't called in real time. You can go back and watch the clip. I think it's pretty straightforward. It's kind of been a discussion for like three years now, and I think we really need to do a better job protecting the people in this league. Obviously, I've been involved in a few of those plays, but there's been plenty of others across the league that haven't got called and you go back in postgame or whatever it is, it seems to make clips, nothing really changes. I think overall, the league just has to do better and we have to invest in those areas. The technology can get better. We can treat the referees a little bit better, pay them like they're full-time employees," Clark said.
Clark hasn't played since she left that June 24 game against the Mercury in the third quarter with her back injury. The 6-foot guard said one of the things that's frustrated her during her absence is how long the national narrative remained fixated on the Thomas incident, calling for fans and media to take note of the positives in the WNBA, too.
"At the same time, it's really interesting to me, because, even I turn the TV on on Sunday and that game was on Wednesday and that's all people are still talking about. I feel like that's just a real disservice to our league. And I get it, you talk about it, you talk about whether it's flagrant, you talk about whatever it is, but to continue to beat down, beat down and then for the narrative to be taken other places that's just really not acceptable, it's hard to see. It's a disservice to my team, but it's also a disservice to the other teams in this league and other players in this league. There's so much amazing talent and there's so many amazing players that are playing at an incredibly high rate.
"I remember watching them discuss it on TV. I didn't know they were going to discuss it. I was just watching the other games, because I try to watch as much as I can. I honestly felt bad for the players that were playing in the games those days. Also, I felt bad for my teammates. They played on Friday and they dominated and they played really well and nobody wanted to talk about that. They were just worried about everything else, and there had been I think 10-plus other games that had already happened to that point," Clark said.
As she reflected upon and discussed some of the narratives surrounding her, the Fever and the league, Clark urged her fellow players, media and fans to be mindful of its younger fans and the ongoing effort to grow women's basketball.
Clark also mentioned a headline that suggested she and the Fever's season has been nothing but frustration.
"It's all of our jobs to help refocus the narratives a lot of the times, and we can do better at that and I think it will help our game grow a lot more. That goes for obviously the Fever and whatever, but, at the same time, you guys are here in this arena every time we play and the amount of people that are passionate and love the game and respect the other team and the young girls and the young boys that show up, we can't lose sight of that. That's whether we're here at home and whether we're on the road, there's a lot of really, really great people that love this league and love our organization. I'm thankful to be here in an organization that has my back and will always stand up for me. I think we can't ever lose sight of that. The joy and the fire and the fun, that's why you play this game.
"I think it kind of goes back to a little bit of my frustration, I remember seeing a headline... and I don't remember who wrote this and I try to stay away from social media as much as I can, but sometimes it can be hard, like I need to be aware of certain things and obviously my team makes me aware of certain things. The headline read, like, 'This season has been everything but fun and just full of frustration for Clark and the Fever.' And I'm like, no one ever asked me that, nobody ever asked me that. That's wrong. Discuss my play, discuss if I played bad, discuss if I played good, discuss our play. And at times I understand there's other things that need to be talked about, great, whatever, but let's continue to move on. But, I think just focusing on the joy and amazing parts of this game. Like I said, I think that sometimes it's a disservice to not only our team, but to everybody else and let's get back to a lot more smiling and positivity. I think our world could use a lot of that," Clark said.
After her five-minute plus opening remarks, Clark was asked in a follow-up what specifically about the discourse surrounding her and the WNBA is difficult for her to see and experience.
"I think people just using my name in ways that are inappropriate. A lot of people, you don't know me. You don't know who I am. I think at times, whether you're me, whether you're LeBron (James), whether you're the coach of the Notre Dame Fighting Irish, whether you're the coach of the New York Giants, there's going to be things that happen that aren't a reflection of you. That doesn't make that OK. I think that's the frustrating part. I think the frustrating part is it seems like everyone wants a click, and that's really disappointing. I get it, you have a job to do. I get that. But, at the same time, that's all you're going to talk about? It's frustrating. Again, talk about it. Talk about if it was a flagrant or not, but, everything that came after that is confusing to me. It's not acceptable.
"Again, I didn't even think it should be up for debate if it was a flagrant or not, so there's that, too. It frustrates me that it takes so much away from the product that's being put on the floor. We've done so much to grow the game over the course of the last three years, and it's like we keep kicking ourself, kicking ourself when we're down and that stinks. We've done so much work. This is the 30th year of the WNBA. We're in a great spot. The talent level is as high as it's ever been, viewership is as high as it's ever been, every arena is selling out. That's not just for us, that's for teams across the league. And we can't just beat on each other, beat on each other and put each other down. We just have to continue to find ways to uplift, and then everybody just get better at the same time. Like I said, my points about the refs and the league overall. We have to improve. League office, you've got to do better, have to find ways to do better. And that's just reality. And that doesn't go for just me and the Fever, that goes for everybody in the league," Clark said.
Contact/Follow us @HawkeyesWire on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Iowa news, notes and opinions. Follow Josh on X: @JoshOnHawks
This article originally appeared on Hawkeyes Wire: 'We have to improve': Caitlin Clark comments on Alyssa Thomas saga, condemns harassment
Continue reading...
Clark revealed that she will be sidelined again for the Fever's Sunday game at the Las Vegas Aces. The Fever superstar also shared her first comments on and reaction to the play with Alyssa Thomas that resulted in Thomas receiving a Flagrant Foul 2 penalty and a one-game suspension.
Thomas said this week that she has received death threats and been subjected to racial slurs since the incident.
Clark gave a lengthy five-minute plus opening statement, where she said the WNBA and its referees need to improve and where she also condemned any fan harassment of Thomas.
"As I've stood up here and said before, the harassment, the hate, none of that is OK. That goes for the opposing team we play, that goes for my teammates, that goes for my coaches. There should never be question of character. I've always stood up here and said that and that's truly what I believe, that's how I was raised. None of that is OK and I don't want anybody to ever experience that.
"I think it can be really frustrating to me at times. I think it's difficult. I think a lot of people sometimes think I'm a robot. I'm not a robot. I have emotions. I have feelings. And it can be really difficult to go through a lot of that. I'm 24 years old trying to navigate a lot... I've been in this world for four years now and you would never change any of it, but there are times that it is hard and there are times that it probably affects me a little bit more than I do put on. I would never change any of that for the world, but I think it's important that people do remember that part of it, too," Clark said.
During the second quarter of its June 24 game against the Mercury, Clark drove the paint, lost her footing and fell to the floor. As Clark scrambled to pass the basketball out to teammate Aliyah Boston, Thomas came over defensively and put her fist into Clark's throat. Upon its postgame review, the WNBA deemed it as a non-basketball act by Thomas.
A third-year pro, Clark said she did think it was a flagrant by Thomas.
"I did think it was a flagrant foul and our reffing just needs to be better. It's tough. Obviously the refs are in a really difficult spot. It's one of the hardest jobs in the world in my opinion is to make calls. All you do is get yelled at the whole time by everybody. You're never winning.
"So, I think for us, the league's just got to do better protecting our players in that regard. I don't really think that it was up for debate. Obviously, it wasn't called in real time. You can go back and watch the clip. I think it's pretty straightforward. It's kind of been a discussion for like three years now, and I think we really need to do a better job protecting the people in this league. Obviously, I've been involved in a few of those plays, but there's been plenty of others across the league that haven't got called and you go back in postgame or whatever it is, it seems to make clips, nothing really changes. I think overall, the league just has to do better and we have to invest in those areas. The technology can get better. We can treat the referees a little bit better, pay them like they're full-time employees," Clark said.
Clark hasn't played since she left that June 24 game against the Mercury in the third quarter with her back injury. The 6-foot guard said one of the things that's frustrated her during her absence is how long the national narrative remained fixated on the Thomas incident, calling for fans and media to take note of the positives in the WNBA, too.
"At the same time, it's really interesting to me, because, even I turn the TV on on Sunday and that game was on Wednesday and that's all people are still talking about. I feel like that's just a real disservice to our league. And I get it, you talk about it, you talk about whether it's flagrant, you talk about whatever it is, but to continue to beat down, beat down and then for the narrative to be taken other places that's just really not acceptable, it's hard to see. It's a disservice to my team, but it's also a disservice to the other teams in this league and other players in this league. There's so much amazing talent and there's so many amazing players that are playing at an incredibly high rate.
"I remember watching them discuss it on TV. I didn't know they were going to discuss it. I was just watching the other games, because I try to watch as much as I can. I honestly felt bad for the players that were playing in the games those days. Also, I felt bad for my teammates. They played on Friday and they dominated and they played really well and nobody wanted to talk about that. They were just worried about everything else, and there had been I think 10-plus other games that had already happened to that point," Clark said.
As she reflected upon and discussed some of the narratives surrounding her, the Fever and the league, Clark urged her fellow players, media and fans to be mindful of its younger fans and the ongoing effort to grow women's basketball.
Clark also mentioned a headline that suggested she and the Fever's season has been nothing but frustration.
"It's all of our jobs to help refocus the narratives a lot of the times, and we can do better at that and I think it will help our game grow a lot more. That goes for obviously the Fever and whatever, but, at the same time, you guys are here in this arena every time we play and the amount of people that are passionate and love the game and respect the other team and the young girls and the young boys that show up, we can't lose sight of that. That's whether we're here at home and whether we're on the road, there's a lot of really, really great people that love this league and love our organization. I'm thankful to be here in an organization that has my back and will always stand up for me. I think we can't ever lose sight of that. The joy and the fire and the fun, that's why you play this game.
"I think it kind of goes back to a little bit of my frustration, I remember seeing a headline... and I don't remember who wrote this and I try to stay away from social media as much as I can, but sometimes it can be hard, like I need to be aware of certain things and obviously my team makes me aware of certain things. The headline read, like, 'This season has been everything but fun and just full of frustration for Clark and the Fever.' And I'm like, no one ever asked me that, nobody ever asked me that. That's wrong. Discuss my play, discuss if I played bad, discuss if I played good, discuss our play. And at times I understand there's other things that need to be talked about, great, whatever, but let's continue to move on. But, I think just focusing on the joy and amazing parts of this game. Like I said, I think that sometimes it's a disservice to not only our team, but to everybody else and let's get back to a lot more smiling and positivity. I think our world could use a lot of that," Clark said.
After her five-minute plus opening remarks, Clark was asked in a follow-up what specifically about the discourse surrounding her and the WNBA is difficult for her to see and experience.
"I think people just using my name in ways that are inappropriate. A lot of people, you don't know me. You don't know who I am. I think at times, whether you're me, whether you're LeBron (James), whether you're the coach of the Notre Dame Fighting Irish, whether you're the coach of the New York Giants, there's going to be things that happen that aren't a reflection of you. That doesn't make that OK. I think that's the frustrating part. I think the frustrating part is it seems like everyone wants a click, and that's really disappointing. I get it, you have a job to do. I get that. But, at the same time, that's all you're going to talk about? It's frustrating. Again, talk about it. Talk about if it was a flagrant or not, but, everything that came after that is confusing to me. It's not acceptable.
"Again, I didn't even think it should be up for debate if it was a flagrant or not, so there's that, too. It frustrates me that it takes so much away from the product that's being put on the floor. We've done so much to grow the game over the course of the last three years, and it's like we keep kicking ourself, kicking ourself when we're down and that stinks. We've done so much work. This is the 30th year of the WNBA. We're in a great spot. The talent level is as high as it's ever been, viewership is as high as it's ever been, every arena is selling out. That's not just for us, that's for teams across the league. And we can't just beat on each other, beat on each other and put each other down. We just have to continue to find ways to uplift, and then everybody just get better at the same time. Like I said, my points about the refs and the league overall. We have to improve. League office, you've got to do better, have to find ways to do better. And that's just reality. And that doesn't go for just me and the Fever, that goes for everybody in the league," Clark said.
Contact/Follow us @HawkeyesWire on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Iowa news, notes and opinions. Follow Josh on X: @JoshOnHawks
This article originally appeared on Hawkeyes Wire: 'We have to improve': Caitlin Clark comments on Alyssa Thomas saga, condemns harassment
Continue reading...
