Caitlin Clark says deliberate shoving by opposing player ‘is not a basketball play’

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UPDATE: Indiana Fever general manager Lin Wood has weighed in on Saturday’s incident involving her player Caitlin Clark and how Chicago Sky guard Chennedy Carter fouled the popular phenom.

“There is a difference between tough defense and unnecessary targeting actions! It has to stop!” Wood wrote in X. “The league needs to “clean up” the trash! That’s NOT what this league is!!

Wood’s tweet accompanied video of the postgame press conference, when Fever coach Christie Sides talked about how Clark was treated during her first season with the WNBA. On Saturday, cameras caught Sky’s Carter checking the shoulder of Clark, who was waiting for an inbounds pass. A common foul was called.

“We’re going to continue to send these possessions to the league and these plays,” Sides told reporters. “Hopefully, they’ll start to take a better look at some of the things we see happening. It’s hard to keep taking hits when she does and not be rewarded with free throws. “She has considered fighting it.”

PREVIOUSLY: Resentment against Caitlin Clark apparently runs deep in the WNBA.

She and the Indiana Fever won on Saturday, posting a 71-70 thriller over the Chicago Sky at Gainbridge Fieldhouse. But the story after the Fever’s first home win centered on one particular foul against Clark.

After Chennedy Carter scored a basket for the Sky with 15.1 seconds left in the third quarter, she went to defend Clark, who was looking for an incoming pass.

Before Clark could make the inbounds pass, she was knocked to the ground by a blow to the shoulder from Carter, who was immediately fouled.

Clark was interviewed by ESPN after the quarter ended and was asked about a conversation she had with the referees.

“Yeah, that’s just not a basketball play,” Clark said. “But you know, I have to get over it, that’s what basketball is all about at this level. I thought we were very physical, we missed some rabbits around the rim, so I hope they fall in the fourth.”

Clark finished with 11 points, eight rebounds and six assists. Carter finished with a game-high 19 points, making 8 of 12 field goals.

Carter declined to answer questions about the foul and Clark after the game.

“I won’t be answering any questions from Caitlin Clark,” he told reporters.

This is not the first time Clark has received punishment. After Thursday’s game against Seattle, he told reporters: “I feel like they’re hitting me, I don’t know.”

Later, a wider-angle shot of the incident showed Angel Reese, a bitter college rival of Clark’s while at LSU, jumping off the bench and applauding her teammate’s tough foul.