Chicago Sky coach Teresa Weatherspoon said the team intends to learn from the incident involving Chennedy Carter and Indiana Fever star Caitlin Clark — after Carter was given a Flagrant Foul 1 by the WNBA for knocking Clark to the ground.
"Physical play, intensity, and a competitive spirit are hallmarks of Chicago Sky basketball," Weatherspoon said in a statement. "Chennedy got caught up in the heat of the moment in an effort to win the game.
"She and I have discussed what happened and that it was not appropriate, nor is it what we do or who we are. Chennedy understands that there are better ways to handle situations on the court, and she will learn from this, as we all will."
Carter gave an unsuspecting shoulder to the back, knocking Clark off her feet late in the third quarter of theFever's 71-70 win on Saturday. Carter has since come under fire by fans and media alike.
Indiana coach Christie Sides suggested this is nothing new, of course.
"We kind of went through this last year with [Aliyah Boston]," Sides said of the Fever's 2023 top draft pick. "New rookies, No. 1 picks ... players want to show that they're vets in this league, and they do want to make it hard on these rookies. That's just how it goes.
"We sent video in [to the WNBA] last year. We were making our complaints to try to figure out to help AB. Then the same this year with Caitlin. It's the same thing. We're going to continue to fight to try to get the calls; they see one thing and we see another."
Clark, for her part, is just playing basketball and doing a nice job as the No. 1 overall pick. She's off to a strong start on a lousy team after a banner career at Iowa — in which she became college basketball's all-time leading scorer.
