Caitlin Clark’s brief, two-season WNBA tenure with the Indiana Fever has oftentimes been marred by controversy.
Despite delivering TV viewership and interest like the WNBA has never seen before, perceived jealousy of Clark’s superstardom from the other league’s stars and from the WNBA itself has been a constant topic of conversation. Unpoliced physicality and the effects its taken on Clark and other stars in the league has been another constant critique of Clark’s short stint in the league.
In 2025, a variety of injuries limited Clark to just 13 games played. For a league that’s seemed primed to finally break into mainstream interest, having its biggest star sidelined and seemingly doing nothing to address it is a surefire recipe to slip back into irrelevance.
On Tuesday, Fever and WNBA fans were vindicated in their fears that the WNBA may have some form or fashion of a vendetta against Clark and against the growth of the league itself.
In her Tuesday exit interview, Minnesota Lynx star forward and vice president of the WNBA Players Association Napheesa Collier had some fiery remarks about and allegations against WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert. Collier, who suffered a season-ending left ankle injury on a controversial play in the final minute of Minnesota’s Game 3 WNBA semifinals loss at Phoenix, attacked the leadership of the WNBA and called commissioner Engelbert “negligent” in her governance.
“Our leadership’s answer to being held accountable is to suppress everyone’s voices by handing out fines,” Collier said. “I’m not concerned about a fine, I’m concerned about the future of our sport. At some point, everyone deserves to hear the truth from someone who I hope has earned the benefit of the doubt to fight for what is right and fair for our athletes and our fans.
“We have the best players in the world. We have the best fans in the world, but right now we have the worst leadership in the world. If I didn’t know exactly what the job entailed, maybe I wouldn’t feel this way, but unfortunately for them, I do. We serve a league that has shown they think championship coaches and Hall of Fame players are dispensable and that’s fine. It’s professional sports, but I will not stand quietly by and allow different standards to be applied at the league level.”
It was the alleged conversation that Collier had with WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert that will disappoint Fever and Iowa fans the most, though.
“This past February, I sat across from (Engelbert) and asked how she planned to address the officiating issues in our league,” Collier said. “Her response was, ‘Well, only the losers complain about the refs.’ I also asked how she planned to fix the fact that players like (Clark, Angel Reese and Paige Bueckers), who are clearly driving massive revenue for the league and are making so little for their first four years.
“Her response was, ‘(Clark) should be grateful. She makes $16 million off the court because without the platform that the WNBA gives her, she wouldn’t make anything.’ And in that same conversation, she told me, ‘Players should be on their knees, thanking their lucky stars for the media rights deal that I got them.'”
If those remarks from Engelbert are factual, then that represents a gross lack of understanding and appreciation for what Clark means to the WNBA and for the future of women’s basketball. And a lack of appreciation for other young stars like Angel Reese and Paige Bueckers.
It’s worth pointing out that Collier is also co-founder of Unrivaled, another professional women’s basketball league that was recently valued at $340 million. Unrivaled announced the signings of star players such as Paige Bueckers and reportedly worked to try to sign Clark before its inaugural season this past winter and spring.
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This article originally appeared on Hawkeyes Wire: WNBA commissioner allegedly shared idiotic Caitlin Clark remarks
Reporting by Josh Helmer, Hawkeyes Wire / Hawkeyes Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
