Indiana Fever guard Caitlin Clark missed Saturday’s game against the L.A. Sparks with a back injury that she suffered during their game earlier this week against the Phoenix Mercury.

In that game, Fever head coach Stephanie White claimed that her star player took two cheap shots from the Mercury, including a blatant closed-fist to the neck from Alyssa Thomas, in a play that has since been retroactively called a flagrant foul by the WNBA, costing Thomas an automatic suspension.

During the recent episode of the “Show Me Something” podcast, Clark’s teammate, Sophie Cunningham, called out the league for not doing enough to ensure Caitlin’s safety against opponents who are trying to hurt her.

“Unfortunately, this type of s–t happens every single game to her and the league and the refs do absolutely nothing about it,” Cunningham said on Saturday. “If she did that to any of our teammates, we’d be pissed, but like they’re definitely targeting her and the league and the refs do nothing to protect her.”

Much has been talked about how Caitlin has taken the WNBA to another level since joining the league in 2024. Her arrival has driven record-breaking TV ratings, sold-out arenas, stronger merchandise sales and a surge in overall attention to women’s basketball. 

However, not many of her peers are as fond of her as her adoring fans and teammates. 

Since her rookie season, Clark has consistently been on the receiving end of hard fouls and physical play from her opponents, including some that her backers say are borderline dirty, like the one that happened between her and Thomas earlier this week. 

That particular play was a no-call during the game. However, after an uproar from her fans and a post-game rant by coach White, the league decided to review the incident and overturn the no-call into a flagrant foul, which led to Alyssa’s one-game suspension. But of course, the Mercury did not agree with the league’s action, with head coach Nate Tibbetts issuing a statement on Saturday.

“I’d like to hit on my disappointment in the suspension process by our league and our leaders in the W. This was not a thorough investigation in my opinion,” Tibbetts said. “We just wish it had been handled the right way. We wish somebody had also called her, checked on her and made sure that she was OK. I don’t think it played out how it should have professionally.”

One day before Sophie and Coach Tibbett spoke, ESPN’s top mouthpiece, Stephen A. Smith, cautioned the WNBA about how it is handling Clark. According to Smith, many players don’t like how popular Caitlin has become, and if the league isn’t careful about protecting her, she might get seriously hurt, which could be disastrous for them.

“There is a flagrant level of resentment that exists when it comes to Caitlin Clark, and it has existed since she arrived in the league. She is the cash cow,” Smith declared. “There is a palpable resentment toward this girl. You have people who resent her star power and her cachet, and as a result, if they have an opportunity to go at her, they’re going to take it.”

“You’re not the NBA. You don’t have an 11-year, $77 billion contract. You’re still building the league. You just reached an incredible collective bargaining agreement. They did a great job with that. The league is growing,” he explained. “But there’s still a lot more work to be done. Don’t get in the way of the cash cow.”

Critics don’t like the “cash cow” narrative, that Caitlin should be an untouchable because she is the golden goose. But that’s not what Smith, Sophie and all her supporters are asking.

It’s the officials who should do a better job. That fist to the throat from Thomas was too blatant to miss. Even the legend Lisa Leslie said so. If that was called in real time, it wouldn’t have escalated to this. Meanwhile, Sophie could be getting a memo and a fine next week.