Adam Silver says it’s unfair to make Caitlin Clark ‘political football’ in WNBA debates

Conversations about WNBA officiating and Caitlin Clark have now expanded to include NBA commissioner Adam Silver.

Silver said Thursday that Clark has become a “political football” amid debates about officiating and physical play in the WNBA, spurred by a recent play involving the star guard and Phoenix Mercury forward Alyssa Thomas.

“Ultimately, the issues around Caitlin Clark are not largely about officiating,” Silver said, “and that particular incident is not about whether a foul should have been called at the time in the game or whether that was ultimately a flagrant on review.”

He made the remarks during an onstage conversation with Andrew Ross Sorkin at the Game Plan Summit, presented by CNBC and Boardroom.

“I have come to know Caitlin really well,” Silver added. “She’s an incredible player and also an incredible person. And she wants to focus on being the best player she can. She has become a bit of a political football in this country, and I think it’s incredibly unfair to her. I don’t think that issue is ultimately about officiating. It’s become political ping-pong with her. And she’s a young woman who’s trying to improve her game.”

The play Silver referred to happened during a 24 June game between the Fever and Mercury when Thomas made contact with her fist to Clark’s throat in the second quarter. Thomas was not called for a foul on the play during the game, but the league subsequently upgraded the play to a flagrant foul and suspended her one game for “recklessly making contact with her fist”.

Thomas later said the play was an accident. She has said she received death threats and was called racial slurs after the incident, also criticizing WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert for not doing more to protect the league’s players.

Clark earlier this month condemned “the harassment, the hate”.

“None of that is OK,” Clark said. “That goes for the opposing ​teams we play, that goes for my ​teammates, that goes for my coaches.“

Fever coach ​Stephanie White also condemned the tone of the discussion, saying the league has seen an increase ​in “toxicity, racism, homophobia” and ‌other hateful comments, particularly online.

Silver declined to comment about a report ​in the Sports Business Journal that he persuaded Engelbert to suspend Thomas, saying it would be unfair to Engelbert and Clark. The WNBA denied the SBJ report, calling it “absolutely false”.

“What people are trying to make a larger issue [about] is not [whether] that was a flagrant foul or not,” Silver said.

“I don’t even think it’s fair to her that this has become a separate storyline about one foul,” Silver said, adding: “Do we need to improve WNBA officiating? No doubt about it.”