Stephanie White Makes Fever Fan Distinction On 'Unacceptable' Alyssa Thomas Threats

Phoenix Mercury forward Alyssa Thomas said on June 30 that she has received death threats in the wake of the on-court incident between her and Indiana Fever guard Caitlin Clark last week, which resulted in Thomas being suspended for one game and fined $1,000.

Fever head coach Stephanie White (who coached Thomas for two seasons on the Connecticut Sun in 2023 and 2024) addressed this when speaking with the media on July 1.

"I just want to address what's going on with AT: first and foremost, it’s absolutely unacceptable. I think as a league, as a whole, there has been so much more toxicity, racism, homophobia—nonsense. Hate nonsense. And it is absolutely unacceptable," White said, per an X post from Tony East.

White added that most of this has come from the online community, which she said, "In my heart of hearts, I believe, not coming from WNBA fans, [or] Indiana Fever fans. I believe this is people who are using our league to further divisive agendas."

She later added, “It’s not hard to not be a jerk. And if you are one of these people who are online, doing this, do not call yourself a WNBA fan. Our league is about inclusiveness, our league is about competition, our league is about elevating… we are not about demeaning, demanding. We are not about continuing this narrative. And it’s just absolutely unacceptable.”

Fever head coach Stephanie White addresses Alyssa Thomas’ comments and “unacceptable” fan behavior: pic.twitter.com/55KB1zIX5z
— Tony East (@TonyREast) July 1, 2026

Stephanie White is Right to Call Out Difference in WNBA Fans and Online Haters

Stephanie White deserves props for differentiating between true WNBA and Indiana Fever fans who love the game of basketball and the people who are using social media and women's basketball to spew hateful narratives.

Given the tribalism and divisiveness that have existed in online women's basketball discourse over the years, it can be convenient to conflate toxic social media users who try to position themselves as Caitlin Clark and Indiana Fever fans with real fans who have no hateful agendas to further, because they often present in similar ways online.

But as White alluded to, these are generally not the same faction of people, and nobody who truly champions Clark, the Fever, or women's basketball as a whole would threaten Alyssa Thomas in the ways she has described in recent days.

White finds herself in a difficult position when making these comments, given that she has a pre-existing relationship with Alyssa Thomas and DeWanna Bonner, yet is still the Fever's head coach. But she did not take any sides in that regard with these comments, instead being very clear about who she's condemning, and how that doesn't include genuine women's basketball fans.

She handled this moment extremely well, in other words, and should get her flowers for doing so.

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