Caitlin Clark Flames Clickbait Media For Using Her Name to Run Narratives: “Not Acceptable”

The narratives surrounding Caitlin Clark and Alyssa Thomas' incident have engulfed the WNBA over the past several days.

Caitlin Clark Flames Clickbait Media For Using Her Name to Run Narratives: “Not Acceptable”

Caitlin Clark calls out clickbait media (Image via FirstSportz)

When the WNBA announced a one-game suspension for Alyssa Thomas after her incident with Caitlin Clark, the league had hoped that it would stop all the noise that had appeared.

Instead, it made matters worse. Fans were unhappy with that decision. They felt the Phoenix Mercury forward was intentional in her act and thus should have been suspended for longer, at least to send a message.

They took matters into their own hands and sent death threats and other forms of online bullying to both Thomas and her fiancé, DeWanna Bonner.

Soon, many in the media started to give their opinions on this matter. Some labeled Clark as an unnecessary ‘distraction,’ while others flat-out wanted her gone from the league.

Others took an additional step and started calling out how the Indiana Fever star was somewhat to blame for this unwanted attention. Now, the point guard has decided to address that.

Even I turned the TV on Sunday, and that game was on Wednesday, and that’s all people are still talking about. And I feel like that’s just a real disservice to our league. And I get it; you have to talk about it… But to continue to be down, be down, and then for the narrative to be taken other places, that is really just not acceptable.

Caitlin Clark told reporters

The 24-year-old added that almost 10 games had been played since that game. Yet, all the media were doing was to milk that narrative and then add more to it. That, to Caitlin Clark, was a disservice to everyone who plays in the league, including her opponents.

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Caitlin Clark calls out The Athletic article for fact-less opinion

Caitlin Clark was speaking about these narratives after addressing what she was wrong about the hate Alyssa Thomas and her other peers in the WNBA were facing. Then, she specifically talked about one article:

Caitlin Clark is frustrated with the media
Caitlin Clark is frustrated with the media (Image via Coach Markus/X)

I remember seeing a headline, I don’t remember who wrote this… It was like, ‘This Season Has Been Everything But Fun, Full of Frustration for Clark and the Fever.’ And I’m like, ‘No one ever asked me that.’ That’s wrong!

Caitlin Clark remarked

The Hawkeye great was referring to the article written by The Athletic’s Candace Buckner. It was labeled as ‘commentary.’ But Clark believes that the author did not get anything right, as she did not know anything about what the Fever or herself feel about their situation.

The two-time All-Star made it clear that such opinions, especially when they are without facts, are hurting the league more than they are helping it. She then asked the reporters in front of her to help steer the narrative back to basketball, as it should be.

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Caitlin Clark takes more shots at clickbait media

After Caitlin Clark addressed all those points, Forbes Sports’ Tony East asked her a follow-up question on her frustrations with the media.

People just using my name in ways that are inappropriate… You don’t know me, you don’t know who I am… Whether you’re me, whether you’re LeBron… It seems like everyone wants a click, and that’s really disappointing… talk about whether it was a flagrant or not, but everything that came after that is confusing to me, and it’s not acceptable.

Caitlin Clark replied

The 2024 Rookie of the Year understands that those in the media have a job to do. But to say anything just to get clicks was making it difficult for the league and her.

She felt that the discourse should have stopped on the discussions about the flagrant foul. Anything said after that, or based on that, was taking the league in a direction that was not required.

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