FOX Sports analyst Nick Wright highlighted that racists were using Caitlin Clark’s popularity to spread hatred towards black WNBA players.
During the 2024 WNBA season, the No. 1 overall pick pushed the league’s attendance and viewership to new heights following her collegiate career at the University of Iowa.
However, Clark’s Rookie of the Year campaign – which ended with the Fever being overrun by the Connecticut Sun – was marred by racial conflict, as her contemporaries repeatedly flagged derogatory comments from her fan base. The excitement started when she faced rival and fellow rookie Angel Reese and advanced to the postseason.
“You have a whole bunch of new fans because Caitlin Clark is at the box office,” the FS1 presenter said on his What is Wright program. “But unfortunately, it was unavoidable, and the league should have seen this train coming down the tracks, on that wagon were people who were not fans of basketball, who were not even real fans of Caitlin Clark.”
“They were fans of what they thought Caitlin Clark could represent, which was the humiliation of black women. And you have a cavalcade of open, unapologetic racists who tried to put a hood on Caitlin Clark fandom and on social internet and last night personally went out of their way to terrorize her opposition,” Wright added.
Nick Wright suggested the racists were posing as Caitlin Clark fans to spread hate
Clark’s fans have been constantly made aware of making racist comments against other players
Following the Fever’s elimination, Connecticut star Alyssa Thomas fumed over the racist abuse her team received from Indiana fans throughout the series. Fans focused on Dijonai Carrington’s eyelashes, while another wore a shirt that said ‘ban nails’ and had large fake nails sticking out of each finger.
“It’s been a lot of nonsense. “I don’t think I’ve ever experienced the racist comments from Indiana Fever fans in my 11-year career,” Thomas said.
“We had (Carrington’s) face on a serious thing that happened in this world and it’s frankly unacceptable. And there’s no place for that and we’ve been professional the whole time, but I’ve never been called anything like I have on social media.”
‘And there’s no room or anything. Basketball is going in the right direction, but we don’t want fans who will relegate us and call us racist names. We already see what is happening in the world and what we have to deal with in that area.’
Alyssa Thomas spoke out about the ‘unacceptable’ racist abuse by Indiana Fever fans
Fans accused the WNBA of ignoring racist abuse until Clark and the Fever exited the playoffs
In September, Reese spoke about the threats she receives from fans in Iowa and Indiana.
“I think there’s a lot of racism when it comes down to it and I don’t think she’s advocating that,” Reese said on the Unapologeically Angel podcast.
“But when it comes to death threats,” she continued. “People have come to my address, follow me home, that’s what it comes down to.”
Reese then added how fans took AI-generated photos of her naked and sent them to her family members.
“It sucks to see that,” Reese continued. ‘And it’s very hard that I have to go through that. And now I see that other players even have to experience that.’
Reese (right) previously said she was the target of racist abuse from Clark fans
Earlier this week, the WNBA posted a statement about racial abuse toward players. However, fans criticized the league for waiting until Clark and the Fever were eliminated before speaking about the issue.
“The WNBA is a competitive league with some of the most elite athletes in the world. “While we welcome a growing fan base, the WNBA will not tolerate racist, derogatory or threatening comments about players, teams or anyone associated with the league,” the statement said.
“League security is actively monitoring threat-related activities and will work directly with teams and arenas to take appropriate action, including involving law enforcement, as necessary.”