The Indiana Fever were able to win their first home game of the season over the weekend, defeating the Chicago Sky 71-70. However, the win was a secondary headline, as Caitlin Clark was on the receiving end of a cheap shot from Chennedy Carter. It was something that Fever head coach Christie Sides was none too pleased with.
Christie Sides was making her feelings well-known on social media after the game. In her opinion, Carter’s foul against Caitlin Clark, which was only a common foul during the game, was unacceptable.
On Sunday, the WNBA reviewed the play and retroactively upgraded it to a Flagrant-1. While there was some solace in that, Sides felt that it needed to be done in the moment given the line it crossed physically.
No fine or suspension was given to Carter. She wasn’t the first player to give Caitlin Clark a welcome to the WNBA moment and certainly won’t be the last. But, the others have all come during the flow of the game or natural basketball players; Carter’s was not.
After the game, Christie Sides did applauded her star rookie for handling things as well as she did. On a nightly basis, Caitlin Clark is getting beat up by opponents who want to show that she still needs to prove herself as a pro.
“We’re just going to keep sending these possessions to the league, and these plays, and hopefully they’ll start, you know, taking a better look at some of the things that we see happening, or we think is happening,” Sides said. “Just more happy that Caitlin handled it the way she did.
“You know, it’s tough to keep getting hammered the way she does and to not get rewarded with free throws or foul calls. She’s continued to fight through that. Appreciate that from her. Really, really proud of her for doing that.”
Chicago Sky head coach Teresa Weatherspoon offered a statement on the situation as well. In no way does she condone what Carter did, and she said that her team will learn from the situation.
A former WNBA star player herself, Weatherspoon knows emotions can get the best of people on the court. But, Carter’s actions were not appropriate in Weatherspoon’s opinion. It will be interesting to see what happens the next time the Indiana Fever and Sky take the court together on June 16th.
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