The GIST: Stop us if you heard this one before, but the WNBA is once again making national news — sadly not because Minnesota Lynx star Kayla McBride broke the league’s single-game 3-point record yesterday (10), but due to on- and off-court drama. Here’s what went down in one tension-filled game.
👀 Chicago Sky’s DiJonai Carrington ejected for flagrant foul on Indiana Fever’s Sophie Cunningham: While attempting to block a shot, Carrington hit Cunningham in the face, a play that was deemed a Flagrant 2 foul and garnered a subsequent ejection from the game. During the 90–86 Sky loss, Carrington posted “WHITE PRIVILEGE” and tagged the Fever.
- The situation is also receiving heightened attention as a result of Cunningham’s recent public stance against trans athlete participation in women’s sports.
- Just 24 hours before the game, the league’s Players Association denounced “hate, abuse, and demonization” of trans folks while commissioner Cathy Engelbert encouraged “respect” in an internal memo, a note that failed to define the league’s stance on trans athletes.
🤨 In the same game, Caitlin Clark received her eighth tech of the season, a foul that was later rescinded: Clark bumped into an official out of bounds, which is a technical foul. In the WNBA, eight techs in a season triggers an automatic one-game suspension, which would have kept Clark on the bench for tomorrow’s 7:30 p.m. ET battle against the NY Liberty.
- However, Clark’s foul was rescinded by the league two hours after the game, making her available for the marquee showdown. As the conversations surrounding the court intensify, here’s to a great night of hooping on it.