Alyssa Thomas Fires Back at WNBA After Receiving Death Threats Over Foul on Caitlin Clark

Mercury star forward Alyssa Thomas spoke to the media after being suspended for a flagrant foul on the Fever’s Caitlin Clark. | Screengrab on Twitter/@CydHenderson

Editor’s note: After this article was published, a WNBA representative sent Sports Illustrated a statement from commissioner Cathy Engelbert: “The WNBA vehemently condemns any and all forms of hate. The safety and well-being of everyone in our community is always the league’s top priority. We are aware of Alyssa Thomas’ comments, and what she and her teammates have experienced is completely unacceptable and not representative of the WNBA community. The league and our security team have been in contact with the Phoenix Mercury organization and remain committed to protecting all players.”

Alyssa Thomas made her first comments on her WNBA suspension for “recklessly making contact” with Caitlin Clark by pressing her fist on Clark’s throat during a game between the Mercury and Fever.

The Phoenix star forward was deemed to have committed a “non-basketball act” when she got tangled up with Clark in the second quarter of the Mercury’s win last week. Clark fell to the ground after running into some contact with a defender, and while Clark was down, Thomas, who was trying to pry the ball away, pressed her fist into the Fever guard’s throat. No foul was called in the moment, but the WNBA issued a retroactive Flagrant 2 foul to Thomas which triggered an automatic one-game suspension.

Thomas addressed her suspension for the first time Tuesday in which she fired back at the “narratives” being painted of her and the Mercury team. She added that she and her team have been the subject of racial slurs and death threats in the wake of the controversial incident.

“There’s a difference between trolling [and hatred], and the hatred that we’re experiencing over a play that honestly was a complete accident, no one even knew it happened. It’s just unfortunate. The league has to do better in this instance,” Thomas told reporters.

Thomas specifically called out WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert for staying silent over the online scrutiny she and the Mercury has since received.

“It’s not even about the suspension, if that’s what they felt was necessary in that moment then so be it,” Thomas continued. “I think the biggest thing is, it’s just about our safety. We’re so concerned with safety on the court, but time and time again we’re having people threatening our lives. Leaking addresses out there, putting crazy pictures that have nothing to do with basketball. At some point the league has to take a stand on it. ... Time and time again, players are going through this, and the league remains silent. I’m sick and tired of it. It’s time for them to step up and have our backs in these instances.”

Alyssa Thomas said she received death threats after last week’s incident & called for the WNBA to take a stand.

“We’re so concerned with safety on the court, but time and time again we’re having people threatening our lives… The league remains silent. I’m sick and tired of it.” pic.twitter.com/CLHzr2fbHB

— Cydney Henderson (@CydHenderson) June 30, 2026

Thomas noted that Engelbert hadn’t reached out to the team at all regarding the suspension, and that she didn’t know she was being suspended until 10 minutes before it was all over social media.

A WNBA representative told Sports Illustrated on Tuesday that Engelbert exchanged texts and offered to get on a call with Thomas last week, according to a person with knowledge of the situation. Engelbert also immediately told league security to get in touch with the Mercury’s security once hearing about the threats.

A brief history of the WNBA’s officiating controversies surrounding Caitlin Clark

The WNBA has come under fire recently for its poor officiating, an inflammatory issue that continues to linger despite the league’s growing popularity and revenue. Clark was on the receiving end of back-to-back cheap shots during the Fever-Mercury game, and outrage over the no-calls has spiraled to the extent of putting players’ lives in danger, as Thomas stated.

This is hardly the first time that there’s been a disproportionate response to an on-court play involving Clark. In June 2025, Clark was in the center of a scrum of Sun players including Jacy Sheldon, who gave the Fever star a shove, and Marina Mabrey, who knocked Clark to the floor. Sheldon later got aggressively fouled by Sophie Cunningham, who received a Flagrant 2 and a separate fine for her retaliatory act, though she didn’t appear to receive as much online hate as Thomas did. In fact, she was praised for being Clark’s enforcer.

A year prior in Clark’s rookie campaign, the Fever guard was poked in the eye by then-Sun guard DiJonai Carrington during a playoff game. Clark and former college rival Angel Reese have also had their share of run-ins over the last three seasons, and their feisty matchups have more often than not served as fodder for toxic discourse on social media.

When probed about the rippling effects of the Clark-Reese rivalry back in 2024, WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert put her own spin on it and called it an asset for the ongoing growth of the league.

“It’s a little of that [Larry] Bird-Magic [Johnson] moment if you recall from 1979, when those two rookies came in from a big college rivalry, one white, one black,” Engelbert said. “And so we have that moment with these two. But the one thing I know about sports, you need rivalry. That’s what makes people watch. They want to watch games of consequence between rivals. They don’t want everybody being nice to one another.”

As the women’s game continues to expand, one thing must remain certain and unnegotiable: The promised safety of its players. Without that, the game is gone. As Thomas put it in her own blunt but honest terms, Engelbert and the league heads must do better when it comes to protecting players and fostering a safer, more inclusive environment so that the W can not only survive but thrive in the future.

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