Caitlin Clark's Fever Courtside Invite Could Include Subtle CBA Message
Indiana Fever star guard Caitlin Clark made her opinion on the ongoing WNBA CBA negotiations extremely clear when speaking with the media on December 12.
"I think the most important thing for myself in thinking about these CBA negotiations is like, this is the biggest moment the WNBA has ever seen. And it's not something that can be messed up. And you know, we're gonna fight for everything we deserve. But at the same time, we need to play basketball. That's what our fans crave, and that's what all of you crave, as well," Clark said.
She later added, "But like I said, this is the biggest moment in the history of the WNBA, and I don't want that to be forgotten. And it's important that we find a way to play this next season, and I think our fans, even everybody that has played in this league before us, deserve that as well."
Clark's claiming that she believes it's important that the WNBA have a season this year, and noting all the people who could directly benefit from a CBA getting done and teams returning to the court, was massive for the women's basketball community to hear, given Clark's influence and star power.
Alas, while Clark's sentiment turned the CBA into a big story for a few days, it didn't create any lasting momentum regarding a deal getting done. Those comments were made about five weeks ago, and there's no indication that the WNBA league office and the players' association are any closer to a ratified CBA than they were when Clark spoke out.
This is frustrating for media, for fans, and probably for Clark.
Caitlin Clark's Fever Invite to Indiana Star Might Have Had CBA Implications
Indiana Hoosiers star wide receiver Elijah Sarratt went viral with comments he made regarding Caitlin Clark before his team won the College Football Playoff National Championship against the University of Miami.
When asked what his dog is named, Sarratt said, "CC. They may not like it, [but] she’s named after Caitlin Clark. That’s why I named her [that]. Indiana fans may not like that. But yeah, that's my American bully. She's my daughter right there."
Indiana WR Elijah Sarratt named his dog CC
— correlation (@nosyone4) January 18, 2026
“They may not like it she’s named after Caitlin Clark that’s why I named her. Indiana fans may not like that.” pic.twitter.com/PhWvo10PLs
This caught Clark's attention, and prompted her to cheer for Indiana during their championship game.
Clark also reposted a video of Sarratt saying this (and a photo of his dog CC) to her Instagram story and wrote, "both are welcome courtside this year".
*noticing that CC said courtside this year*
— allison (@_girltalk) January 19, 2026
FIX THE CBA 😭 pic.twitter.com/Kvm2na9GFr
Of course, if Sarratt and his dog CC were coming to a Fever game this year, that would mean a new CBA would be in place.
Perhaps Clark was trying to send a subtle message about where she wants the ongoing CBA negotiations to lead with this courtside invite.
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Grant Young covers Women’s Basketball, the Indiana Fever and the New York Mets for Sports Illustrated’s ‘On SI’ sites. He holds an MFA degree in creative writing from the University of San Francisco (USF), where he also graduated with a Bachelor’s Degree in Marketing and played on USF’s Division I baseball team for five years. However, he now prefers Angel Reese to Angels in the Outfield.
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