Indiana fever star Caitlin Clark not a fan of WNBA refs, blasting them during a postgame conference call for their “ridiculous” technical foul call on her last night’s game against the Phoenix Mercury.
In her statement, Clark criticized the officials, accusing them of being dismissive of “competitive basketball” after a fiery interaction with a former teammate, WNBA champion DeWanna Bonner.
Clark isn’t the only one who has shared her displeasure with the WNBA’s officials and controversial calls. Last season, Minnesota Lynx star Napheesa Collier lashed out at the league’s commissioner, Cathy Engelbert, accusing her of aiding and abetting the task.
Clark led the Indiana Fever to an 86-77 victory over the Phoenix Mercury; however, the victory was marred by an overly physical fourth quarter that led to several technical fouls and an ejection.
Clark and Bonner had choice words for each other after Clark fouled the All-Star in the fourth quarter, according to ESPN. Clark later clapped her hands, which an official took as unsportsmanlike conduct and assessed her a technical, her fifth of the season.
“We should all just go on the calendar now and pick a fight that I’ll be suspended for if I get techniques clapped,” Clark said after calling the move “ridiculous.”
Clark says she questioned a WNBA referee about her technical foul, accusing them of being dismissive of ‘competitive basketball’
🤯 WHAT ON EARTH – Caitlin Clark gets attacked for existing and refs call her a technical foul 👀 They all hate her…….
The @WNBA is an absolute joke!! 🤡 pic.twitter.com/eWirB0ytA3
— HeroOfTheDay (@Hero_OfThe_Day) 23 June 2026
Clark revealed in the post-game conference that she asked the referee, specifically Gerda Gatling, why she received a technical foul, which the WNBA official reportedly told her was due to her incitement.
“I said, ‘OK, you just don’t love competitive basketball, and that’s just the facts, that’s just the reality,'” Clark added. “So disappointing from them.”
Clark believes the WNBA should take her technical foul
Caitlin Clark calls Alyssa Thomas a bitch after being called for a fake foul https://t.co/yZBTxsMIiI pic.twitter.com/tL5MJcIOrW
— HUNCHO (@HunchoGambles) 23 June 2026
Clark wasn’t the only one receiving technical fouls last night. Her teammate, Myisha Hines-Allen, received two and was booted from the game. Mercury’s Alyssa Thomas was also assessed a technical for her back and forth with Fever players.
Despite the explanation, Clark doesn’t think she did anything wrong for the officials to bring her up. “If something technically had to be taken away, so be it — if it’s really for clapping, that’s what they said they gave it to me for,” she said. “It’s just ridiculous. I don’t understand it all.”
Clark continued to say that she would not change her playing style. In fact, she challenged the league to review the call and inform her of their findings.
“I’m going to play with emotion, I’m going to play with passion, and if they want to give me a technical foul to clap, so be it. It’s their choice,” she said. “The league can go back and review that play, and I’d love to hear what they say, the reasoning behind why I got the technical foul in that situation and why other players on their team didn’t get a technical foul in that situation. If anything, break it down. Okay, everybody gets a technical foul, that’s not how they were handed out. I’d love to know.”
Fever Head Coach Stephanie White talks about Clark’s technical foul
Her crashout was valid but in her iowa year rookie szn and 2025 she would 100% take a step three back and I guaranteed that thing went in.@CaitlinClark22 Bb, just do it.. you are the best at it 🤧 The judges are bad, stop depending on itpic.twitter.com/KWAsuv5G8r
— keeraa ❤️🔥 (@after2xx3) 19 June 2026
Clark is known for playing with emotions, and over the past few weeks her on-court outbursts have been highlighted across social media.
Feber head coach Stephanie White commented on that last night, saying the Iowa alum needs to be “aware” of how her passion can be expressed in games. “Of course. I think there are some we can do without,” she said.
“There are natural things that happen that the energy of the game creates when you get them, but there are some that we can have a little more control over. So yes, we will continue to remind her and I think she needs to have an awareness,” she added.
Collier blasts the league commissioner in searing horror
Clark is not alone in her feelings about the WNBA’s referees. Last year, Collier blasted Englebert in his postseason interview. In her statement, she criticized Englebert, saying the WNBA has “the worst management in the world.”
“Since I’ve been in the league, you’ve heard the constant concerns about officiating, and it’s now reached levels of inconsistency that plague our sport and undermine the integrity in which it operates. Whether the league cares about the health of the players is one thing. But also not caring about the product we put on the floor is really a given,” she said.
Collier continued, claiming that Englebert dismissed her claims, saying that only “losers complain about the refs.” The 29-year-old continued: “That’s the mentality that drives our league from the top. We go to battle every day to protect a shield that doesn’t value us.”
So what now? Whether the league responds to Clark’s comments about the officiating remains to be seen, but one thing is clear: the spotlight is now firmly on the umpires.
