Caitlin Clark missed two key free throws down the stretch and coughed the ball up in overtime, allowing Las Vegas Aces “Point Gawd” Chelsea Gray to hit a buzzer-beating three-pointer in a hard-fought Fever’s loss on Thursday night.
It was the kind of WNBA matchup the league craves for in primetime. Star power galore on both ends.
Caitlin Clark Misses Key Free Throws, Turnover In OT Leads To Game-Winning Three
As often happens when Clark doesn’t play well or simply makes a mistake that might cost her team, her fan base couldn’t accept defeat. Instead they chose to focus on the defensive play of the game, where A’ja Wilson was guarding Clark with the game clock ticking. Clark attempted to throw a lazy, loopy pass over Wilson’s head but instead the 6-foot-4 defender disrupted the pass and outhustled Clark for the ball.
The rest is Las Vegas Aces history, a 86-84 win at a crucial point of the season where contenders and pretenders start to separate. If Clark would have hit her free throws in regulation, the game would have been sealed. But the WNBA’s cash cow missed.
Fans Blame Refs, Say CC Was Fouled By A’ja Wilson On Costly Turnover
The conversation from the sore loser fans was borderline embarrassing but predictable.
“Wow. Watch this f*cking no-call for Aja ‘The Whistle’ Wilson. If you didn’t know it was rigged before, now you do,” captioned one Caitlin Clark stan account, above a slow mo of A’ja Wilson supposedly fouling Clark on her horrible pass attempt.
“Loose ball foul is the obvious call here but when an organization that’s run as poorly as the @wnba and hates players that don’t actively push their woke agenda, this isn’t surprising,” another disgruntled fan commented.
“What people are not understanding is this actually should be a loose ball fall due to Wilson’s extension of her arm. Yes, they both did little pokes at each other before this play, but the extension of the arm push is a foul that should be called. That is a call for any player!” added another CC fan.
“Aja is the one who moves into Clark and inserts her arm up and under and hooks Clark,” a netizen tweeted.
Only CC Fans Think A’ja Wilson Fouled Her: Cries Of Racism Against White Players
Most fans found it comical that there would be such a huge deal made on the play when it was clear that once that ball was affected it was up for grabs. Clark just got beat by a four-time MVP and best defensive player in the league who can guard positions 1 to 5. It happens.
“Yeah, CC pushed off, they SHOULD HAVE CALLED A CHARGE!!! CC always pushes off and they don’t call it!! DO BETTER REFS!!” one fan said, accusing Clark of fouling.
“Cry Whitey. That’s all you do when CC flops and fails,” one netizen said.
When in doubt, just call the WNBA a league that’s “racist” against white players, totally ignoring the league’s history and plethora of white superstars and MVPs.
“The league is inherently racist and hates whites,” one sore loser quipped.
To which another fan replied: “Very logical explanation. If you’re a white supremacist idiot that doesn’t know anything about basketball.”
“Yet whites have been extremely successful in the WNBA for decades… you people are just Caitlin crybabies trying to create this false narrative,” another fan who is fed up with the excuses from Clark’s fan base.
Clark Admits She Messed Up: Gains Respect
After the game, Clark didn’t duck any smoke from the press, and she didn’t try to blame Wilson. She accepted her mistake, took the L and will go back at it next time. The next Indiana Fever game is on Saturday, August 8 against the Chicago Sky at the United Center in Chicago, Illinois.
“It was me that made costly errors,” Clark said.
“Caitlin took full accountability for last night’s crazy ass loss to the defending champ Aces. This is what leaders do. They don’t leave things unsaid to stay protected by the displaced blame employed by fans & media,” one X account captioned above a video of Clark’s postgame presser.
Fans Want Clark To Cut Down On Turnovers
The flip side of Clark’s offensive aggression and brilliance is the fact that she turns the ball over more than anyone in the league. She averages around 4.7 to 5.1 turnovers per game for the Fever, placing her at the top of the league in that category, alongside leading the team heavily in usage and assists
“Good for her. She has to get a handle on those costly turnovers, especially in crunch time,” one fan said.
“She’s the gift and the curse,” another fan said on Threads. “She needs to find a calm middle. Still a bit out of control at times as a player.”
Yes, Clark is sensational, but to reach championship GOAT status she has to improve on her all-around game, which means making better decisions with the basketball, period. The fact that she accepts her shortcomings even if her fans would rather hide their heads in the sand and blame intangible forces means she is maturing and still on track to be the player her fans want her to be. If they let her.
