Connecticut Sun player Alyssa Thomas accused Indiana Fever fans of racism after eliminating the team from the playoffs.
The Sun beat Caitlin Clark and the Fever 87-81 in game two of the WNBA postseason series to advance and send the young phenom home.
After the game, Thomas shared some lengthy comments accusing Fever fans – which clearly just means Caitlin Clark fans – of engaging in racism.
She said the following:
“Honestly, it’s been a lot of nonsense. I think in my 11-year career, I’ve never experienced the racial comments from the Indiana Fever fan base. We had [Dijonai Carrington’s] face on a serious matter that happened in this world, and It’s unacceptable, honestly. There’s no place for it. We’ve been professional throughout the whole entire thing, but I’ve never been called the things that I’ve been called on social media. There’s no place for it. Basketball is headed in a great direction, but we don’t want fans that are going to degrade us and call us racial names. I mean, we already see what’s happening in the world and what we have to deal with in that aspect. And, you know, we come to play basketball for our job and it’s fun, but we don’t want to go to work every day and have social media blown up over things like that. It’s uncalled for. Something needs to be done, whether it’s them checking their fans or this league checking, there’s no time for it anymore.”
Alyssa Thomas called out the hate that Sun players have faced from the Fever fanbase, saying she’s never experienced these type of racial comments before:
“It’s uncalled for, and something needs to be done, whether it’s them checking their fans, or the league.” pic.twitter.com/qpqhkThW1p
— Noa Dalzell 🏀 (@NoaDalzell) September 26, 2024
Alyssa Thomas accuses Indiana Fever fans of being racist.
The WNBA released a statement that the “league is actively monitoring threat-related activity and will work directly with teams and arenas to take appropriate measures to include involving law enforcement, as necessary.”
You can read the entire statement from the WNBA below.
While any inappropriate behavior isn’t acceptable or something that should be condoned, comments of this nature without direct proof should always be scrutinized.
What exactly has been said? Who exactly said it? How does Thomas know it’s fans of Clark and the Fever and not random internet trolls looking to sow chaos and division?
If you’re going to get in front of the media and accuse an entire fan base of engaging in racism, then the public is owed as specific details as possible.
Otherwise, large groups of people are possibly being unfairly branded as racists. Again, that’s not to say there haven’t been inappropriate comments. Maybe there have been, but fans are owed actual proof before buying into a narrative. Not only are fans owed proof, but the proof had better be overwhelming and unimpeachable.
The WNBA is literally threatening to get the police involved, but nobody seems interested in offering up specifics.
Alyssa Thomas accuses Indiana Fever fans of being racist. (Photo by Chris Marion/NBAE via Getty Images)
