Clark denounces online hate directed at Mitchell — SkimNews
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- Caitlin Clark denounced online abuse aimed at backcourt mate Kelsey Mitchell during her final media session of the season Thursday, calling Mitchell a "good soul" and saying the two have spoken since Mitchell's season-ending press conference
- Clark explicitly condemned people who have used her to demonstrate "racist rhetoric or hate or discrimination," saying "that's never been something I've stood for," and drew a parallel to Coco Gauff's recent comments about her own experience with online hate
- Kelsey Mitchell, an unrestricted free agent after setting the WNBA single-season scoring record, is the Fever's top retention priority, and Clark said "I hope for the rest of my career I get to play alongside her"
- Mitchell has played all nine seasons with Indiana after being the No. 2 pick in the 2018 draft, and said Saturday that "showing up every day to compete for fans that may or may not like you is hard"
- Other WNBA incidents contextualize the problem: A'ja Wilson's Game 2 postseason altercation with a fan at Gainbridge Fieldhouse, Jackie Young's August complaint about courtside fans, and Mercury forward Alyssa Thomas receiving death threats and racial slurs after her one-game suspension for making contact with Clark's throat — none of the fans involved were found to have violated the league's fan code of conduct
- WNBPA treasurer Brianna Turner, a former Fever player, publicly contradicted GM Amber Cox's claim that "the attacks on our fanbases have no basis in reality," calling that statement "unequivocally false" on social media
- Clark said she no longer checks her direct messages on social media to block out the noise, adding that she's been "under this microscope with the lights bright for six years now"
Why it matters: This crystallizes the tension between the Fever's urgent need to retain their scoring-record free agent and a toxic fan environment multiple players have flagged. The dispute between GM Cox (attacks are "unfounded") and WNBPA's Turner ("unequivocally false") — alongside the league clearing fans in documented abuse cases — leaves a credibility gap that could shape Mitchell's free agency decision.
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