WNBA suspends Alyssa Thomas 1 game
for hit to Caitlin Clark's throat
[June 26, 2026]
By DOUG FEINBERG
NEW YORK (AP) — The WNBA has suspended Phoenix's Alyssa Thomas for
one game after she made contact with her fist to Caitlin Clark's
throat in Wednesday night's matchup against Indiana.
It happened with 6:52 left in the second quarter and was deemed to
be a non-basketball act. The league gave Thomas a Flagrant Foul 2
penalty for it. No foul was called on the play by officials.
The WNBA is allowed to review a game to reclassify a Flagrant foul
or to classify as Flagrant any foul not called as such during a
game.
Thomas will serve her suspension on Saturday when the Mercury visit
the Toronto Tempo.
“It was egregious. The fact that it was a no-call … You got to call
it,” said Fever coach Stephanie White after the game. “You’re coming
in here aware of what happened two nights ago and that (expletive)
still happens? Absolutely unacceptable.”
The Fever renewed their call for player safety in a statement
Thursday.
“Player safety should be paramount in our league,” Fever team
president Kelly Krauskopf said in a statement. “We appreciate the
WNBA’s review of last night’s incident and the action taken. Right
now our focus is on Caitlin and our entire team as we prepare for
Saturday.”
The Fever host Los Angeles on Saturday night.
This isn’t the first time the league has upgraded a foul against
Clark. Last season Marina Mabrey, when she was with Connecticut,
received a technical foul in a game against Indiana. The league
later upgraded it to a Flagrant 2. Over the years the NBA has had a
few instances where the league upgraded a play that resulted in a
suspension.
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Indiana Fever guard Caitlin Clark (22) drives on Atlanta Dream guard
Te-Hina Paopao (2) in the first half of a WNBA basketball game in
Indianapolis, Thursday, June 18, 2026. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)
The two teams also played on Monday night and there
were six technical fouls called and one ejection. Clark picked up
her fifth technical of the season in that game. The team petitioned
the league to have it rescinded, but the WNBA confirmed that the
technical will stand.
The physical play carried over to Wednesday's game which the Mercury
won 111-109.
Clark left the game in the third quarter as she was dealing with a
back issue. She appeared to tweak her back in the second quarter
when she was fouled shooting a 3-pointer in the second quarter. She
fell to the ground and was rubbing her back as she stood up. In the
first quarter she went back to the tunnel and returned to the bench
wearing a wrap around her back.
She finished the game with 19 points and eight assists in 20
minutes.
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