Budding WNBA star Caitlin Clark has not been having a great week.
After much hype surrounding her getting drafted by the Indiana Fever last month, Clark’s team has not been doing so hot since the season began, sitting at 0-4 after another loss Monday night.
And the former Iowa star’s vulgar outburst at a referee during the latest defeat did not help.
Now, to be fair to Clark, she scored 17 points in her team’s 88-84 loss to the Connecticut Sun at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis.
That said, yelling expletives at the referee was not a smart move on her part and, as the New York Post reported, ended up earning her a technical foul that helped the Sun win the game.
Clark’s outburst came after Connecticut’s Alyssa Thomas stole the ball to go the other way in the fourth quarter with the Fever up by 1 point.
The No. 1 overall draft pick went up to the referee and appeared to shout, “It’s a f***ing foul.”
That prompted an immediate technical foul, giving the Sun an extra free throw that tied the game.
Clark talked about it during the postgame news conference.
“Just the technical foul, can’t get that,” she said. “A little frustration of how the game was reffed. But it is what it is. That’s out of your control.”
With this being the fourth loss for her winless team after her much-anticipated WNBA debut, Clark was understandably frustrated, both with her team’s struggles and with what she perceived as a failure on the official’s part.
Still, in her position as the most widely recognized and popular women’s basketball player today, her reacting in this way during a game was not exactly prudent.
If you’re Caitlin Clark, you have to act better than this.
She has been expected to carry the WNBA to a new level of popularity, which means she will be held to a higher standard than the average player.
Throwing a tantrum because the ref didn’t make what you thought was the right call is ridiculous.
With the Fever on a losing track, Clark needs to get her temper under control if she wants the team to get back on track.
Do you like Caitlin Clark?
Yes, she’s young, yes, college basketball is different from professional, but Clark has more eyes and therefore more scrutiny directed toward her than other first-year players.
Let’s hope this was a rookie mistake from which she has already learned.
Otherwise, her career might not end as auspiciously as it began.
Clark will get another chance at her first victory on Wednesday night when the Fever visit the 1-3 Seattle Storm.
