Mercury coach Nate Tibbetts calls out WNBA, defends Alyssa Thomas after Caitlin Clark controversy
Get the Sports newsletter
Daily sports — scores, transfers, the storylines from the leagues you actually follow. Free.
- Alyssa Thomas received a retroactive one-game suspension (Flagrant 2) from the WNBA for "recklessly making contact with her fist to the throat area" of Caitlin Clark during a second-quarter loose-ball scramble in the Mercury's Wednesday win over Indiana, with no foul called during the game.
- Nate Tibbetts opened his pregame press conference Saturday ahead of the Toronto Tempo matchup on CBS with a lengthy defense of Thomas, saying she's "100% supported" by the Mercury and "not cheap," while calling the league's investigation "not thorough" and "extremely disappointing."
- Tibbetts alleged that no one from the league contacted Thomas, Mercury's security team, or himself about the incident, contrasting the process with NBA investigations where "calls on both sides" are standard.
- Fever coach Stephanie White called Thomas' conduct "egregious and utterly disrespectful" and said Clark absorbed "two cheap shots," the second being a landing space foul that appeared to jar Clark's back.
- Caitlin Clark left Wednesday's game with a back injury and has been ruled out indefinitely, and White said she was "more surprised" nothing was called on the floor in real time.
- Tibbetts, a member of the WNBA's referee task force alongside White, Cheryl Reeve, and Becky Hammon, demanded that suspensions be applied consistently regardless of "generational talent, fan base involvement, All-Star level players or role players," or factors like race, nationality, or veteran status.
- White previously coached Thomas with the Connecticut Sun in 2023 and 2024, a connection Tibbetts cited to argue she should know Thomas' character before labeling the play "cheap."
Why it matters: This public rebuke from Tibbetts—a member of the WNBA's own referee task force—escalates a league-wide officiating debate while Thomas serves her suspension and Clark remains sidelined indefinitely. Tibbetts' allegation that the league failed to contact Thomas, Mercury's security team, or himself before issuing the suspension puts the WNBA's review process directly under scrutiny from one of its own governance participants.
Ask SkimNews
