The WNBA has upgraded Chicago Sky guard Chennedy Carter’s foul on the Indiana Fever’s Caitlin Clark from a common foul to a flagrant 1 after a review Sunday morning, the league told ESPN’s Alexa Philippou.
The incident occurred at the end of the third quarter of the Fever’s 71-70 victory Saturday in the Commissioner’s Cup – the WNBA’s version of the In-Season Tournament.
After hitting a jumper, Carter shoved Clark in the back before the latter could receive the inbound pass.
The play was deemed a common foul and wasn’t reviewed by officials.
In her postgame press conference, Carter refused to talk about the incident. “I ain’t answering no Caitlin Clark questions,” she said, per Scott Agness of Fieldhouse Files.
Late Saturday night, Carter replied to a post about the press conference on Instagram’s Threads, saying: “Beside 3-point shooting, what does (Clark) bring to the table, man?”
Fever head coach Christie Sides took to X Saturday to call out the WNBA and its officials for the lack of consistency.
Sides and the Fever have sent multiple plays of Clark “getting hammered” to the league office, per Philippou. “We’re just going to keep sending these possessions to the league, and these plays, and hopefully they’ll start, you know, taking a better look at some of the things that we see happening, or we think is happening,” the bench boss said.
Chicago rookie Angel Reese was fined $1,000 for not making herself available to the media after the loss. The Sky also received a $5,000 punishment for failing to ensure their players complied with WNBA policies, the league announced.
Carter finished with a game-high 19 points, while Clark finished with 11 points and six assists.
The two teams will face each other again on June 16 in Indiana.
