Caitlin Clark Fined for Criticism of Referees After Fever’s Playoff Victory

Caitlin Clark Fined for Comments About Officiating

Indiana Fever star Caitlin Clark has been fined $200 for a social media comment where she criticized the officiating during her team’s recent playoff series victory against the Atlanta Dream. Clark herself confirmed the sanction. “I was fined $200 for this, haha,” Clark posted on X, along with laughing emojis and a screenshot of a comment on Instagram where she wrote “The referees couldn’t stop us.”

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Got fined $200 for this lol 😂 pic.twitter.com/u44Q8X1y1U

— Caitlin Clark (@CaitlinClark22) September 16, 2023

Clark, who was ruled out for the rest of the season due to an injury on September 4, drew attention to the issue during the Fever’s practice on Saturday, shouting to reporters from across the gym: “Hey everyone, go check out my tweet!” Her teammate, Sophie Cunningham, also spoke out on X: “That’s really going to break the bank,” Cunningham wrote, who has also been fined several times this season for criticizing the referees. “I’m starting a GoFundMe now!”. Arbitration was a significant conversation topic during the first-round series between the sixth-seeded Fever and the third-seeded Dream. At least 36 fouls were called in each game, including 43 in Game 1. The Fever finally defeated Atlanta thanks to a comeback, with an 87-85 victory in the decisive Game 3, where Aliyah Boston scored the basket that gave them the lead with 7.4 seconds remaining in the game. The Fever will face the Las Vegas Aces in the next round, with Game 1 scheduled for Sunday.

It was an American football game. There were bodies flying all the time. Frankly, that made basketball very ugly and I think it’s something the league needs to analyze.

Becky Hammon

Clark, Cunningham, and three other Fever players have had to watch the playoffs from the bench after suffering season-ending injuries. Damiris Dantas was also out for the first round due to a concussion. Her status for the semifinals is uncertain. “THE BANK WILL BE EVEN MORE SCANDALOUS TOMORROW LET’S GO!”, Clark also said in the X post.