Whether you like it or not, the last three seasons of the WNBA have been dominated by conversations that include, exclude, or are about Caitlin Clark. From the moment Clark was drafted as the No. 1 overall pick by the Indiana Fever ahead of the 2024 WNBA season, she's had possibly more eyes on her than any player in recent history.
That's been for different reasons each season. In 2024 everyone wanted to see what she could do—Clark was brand new to the league, and ready to take her collegiate game to the next level. The Fever didn't do as well as they hoped that year but they also didn't totally bomb, and the team came into the 2025 season feeling great.
Last season fell apart for the Fever over and over again. Clark was sidelined with several injuries, which kept her name in the news even when she wasn't on the court. That also meant that there was even more excitement ahead of the 2026 season, when Clark was finally healed enough to play in the WNBA again.
Anyone who's been watching knows officiating and foul calls have been a huge part of the chatter surrounding this season, and Clark has been at the center of those conversations more often than not. Sometimes, people are debating whether or not she's flopping or overreacting to a call in the middle of the game. Other times, they're defending her after apparent fouls go uncalled. Clark has questioned the consistency of foul calls this season more than once, and she's never shied away from making her true feelings clear during a game.
Per Sports Business Journal, NBA Commissioner Adam Silver stepped into the fray this week and offered his take on what he thinks is going on when people speak about Clark. To a degree, he was right... but he was also kind of wrong. Silver told reporters at NBA Summer League in Las Vegas that Clark has become "a bit of a political football in this country," something he said was unfair to her. Silver also said that not all of the conversations about Clark are really about fouls, even when people are saying that they are.
Silver is correct: way too many people and politicians have tried to grab on to whatever relevancy they can be injecting themselves into this WNBA season. Silver also said that it's not fair that a foul can become a story on its own, something that obscures how Clark or other players perform in a game. That's also a great take, and hopefully something that others will pay attention to.
But Silver didn't appear to address allegations of racism and harassment that other players said they've received due to these same conversations. Silver, who is ultimately the boss of WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert, has a duty to speak about and protect those players, too. The closest it seems like he got was saying, "Yes, we need to improve WNBA officiating, and there's lots of work to do on NBA officiating as well, but I really think there's an opportunity to support Caitlin and say, let her be the best basketball player she can be."
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