Caitlin Clark shades WNBA referees again after hard foul from Chennedy Carter: 'That's not a basketball play'

David Suggs

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Caitlin Clark shades WNBA referees again after hard foul from Chennedy Carter: 'That's not a basketball play' image

Caitlin Clark is not pleased with the way she's been guarded in her first 10 WNBA games.

The Fever rookie has faced a cadre of physical opponents to begin her professional career. Saturday's 71-70 win against the Sky was no exception, with Chicago guard Chennedy Carter shadowing Clark's ever move.

Unstoppable force met immovable object as Carter collided with Clark late in the third quarter. The Indiana phenom fell to the ground — and when asked about the play seconds later during the period break, Clark voiced her displeasure with the foul and the call from the officials.

For Clark, that marks the second time in as many games she has offered pointed criticism of how opponents are defending her and how officials are policing it. Here's what you need to know about the 22-year-old point guard's complaints.

Caitlin Clark calls out hard foul from Chennedy Carter

While Clark's first WNBA match against her collegiate foes Angel Reese and Kamilla Cardoso served as the biggest storyline of the game, Carter stood out from the pack.

The 25-year-old guard scored a game-high 19 points off the bench on 8-of-12 shooting, and she also added four rebounds and six assists. Plus, she hounded Clark all over the floor.

After sinking a mid-range jumper in Clark's vicinity in the final minute of the third quarter, Carter made sure to let the 22-year-old rookie know she wasn't intimidated by her presence.

MORE: How many points did Caitlin Clark score vs. Sky?

Carter stepped toward Clark and bumped the Fever guard with her shoulder, sending her hurtling into the floor. The referees ruled that Carter's bump was no more than a common foul, and Clark appeared visibly angry as she sat on the hardwood.

As Carter approached Clark, she appeared to fire off an obscenity at the Iowa product. Among those supporting Carter after the play was Reese, who stood up off the bench and clapped once Clark went down.

During the television timeout at the end of the third quarter, Clark threw some shade at the referees for failing to assess Carter with a flagrant foul.

"That's just not a basketball play," Clark said. "But gotta play through it."

Clark also had something to say about officiating following Indiana's previous game, a 103-88 loss to the Storm. She was similarly displeased with the amount of contact she was experiencing while having the ball in her hands, as well as the referees' hesitancy with handing out fouls.

“I feel like I’m getting hammered,” Clark said after the game.

Fever head coach Christie Sides agreed with her star rookie.

“We’ve just got to get better with the officiating,” Sides said. “We’ve got to get some of those calls. I feel like they’re getting some calls that’s happening on our end as well and I just don’t feel like we’re getting some of those.”

Carter, for her part, declined to comment on Clark following Saturday's game.

“I ain’t answering no Caitlin Clark questions," she said.

Clark's clash with Carter wasn't the only one that the rookie experienced Saturday afternoon. She also collided with Reese in the fourth quarter, although a closer examination revealed there wasn't all that much contact between the two. ESPN commentators called out Clark for appearing to embellish her fall to the floor.

In the end, Clark got the last laugh, as the Fever finished the game on top, outlasting the Sky despite some late-game errors.

Nevertheless, Carter's bump is certain to loom large in the minds of those disillusioned with Clark's opponents, their physicality towards her and her alleged lack of protection by referees.

David Suggs

David Suggs Photo

David Suggs is a content producer at The Sporting News. A long-suffering Everton, Wizards and Commanders fan, he has learned to get used to losing over the years. In his free time, he enjoys skateboarding (poorly), listening to the likes of Stevie Wonder, Marvin Gaye and D’Angelo, and penning short journal entries.