Caitlin Clark shared an emotional message for her fans Wednesday night as she reflected on her debut season in the WNBA.
The 22-year-old’s sensational rookie season in the professional league came to an end last week when the Indiana Fever crashed out of the playoffs in a second straight loss to the Connecticut Sun.
After taking a week to recover from the loss, Clark took to social media to thank his fans.
“Year one,” he posted alongside a green tick emoji. ‘Thank you to the many people who have supported me while I was able to live my childhood dream. “I am filled with gratitude as I reflect on this last year of my life.”
“See you all in the second year,” he concluded.
Caitlin Clark shared an emotional message to her fans on Wednesday night following her debut season.
Clark’s sensational rookie season in the professional league came to an end last week.
Clark’s message came just hours after the WNBA’s latest racial dispute made headlines.
The Fever’s exit from the playoffs was overshadowed by yet another controversy after Connecticut Sun guard DiJonai Carrington accidentally poked Clark in the eye during the best-of-three series.
USA Today columnist Christine Brennan asked Carrington after the incident when the hit was intentional, which the player denied. Likewise, Carrington also denied laughing about the incident after cameras caught her laughing with her teammates later in the Game 1 victory.
The consultation sparked a war between Brennan and the WNBA players’ union, who called for the journalist’s dismissal.
While Carrington responded to Brennan’s questions without complaint, the WNBA players’ union responded with a scathing statement directed at the famed columnist.
“To non-professional members of the media like Christine Brennan: You are not misleading anyone,” the WNBPA statement read.
“That so-called interview in the name of journalism was a blatant attempt to incite a professional athlete to participate in a false narrative designed to fuel racist, homophobic and misogynistic vitriol on social media. You can’t hide behind your mandate.
“He has abused his privileges and does not deserve the credentials he was given.”
The Fever newbie took to social media to thank her fans for her “childhood dream.”
Clark (right) is seen being defended by DiJonai Carrington in their first round series.
Brennan, a 66-year-old sports writing pioneer, has been defended by dozens of journalists since the controversy began, including some on both sides of the political divide. For example, liberal Keith Olbermann and conservative Jason Whitlock condemned the WNBPA for its statement.
Additionally, USA Today issued a statement saying the newspaper rejects “the notion that the interview perpetuated any narrative other than directly obtaining the players’ perspective.”
However, retired soccer star Megan Rapinoe weighed in on Wednesday’s debate when she pointed to the “racist” issue.
“My gut reaction was like, ‘That’s not good.’ That doesn’t feel good. To be honest, that feels racist,” Rapinoe told her partner and retired WNBA legend Sue Bird on their podcast. .
Rapinoe believed Brennan was instinctively defending Clark, who happens to be the subject of the columnist’s next book.
“I think it’s very disingenuous for Christine Brennan and other members of the media to say, ‘I’m just asking the question,'” Rapinoe said.
“But what’s really happening is your natural instinct to protect and narrate white players instead of ‘haunt and narrate black players.'” To me, that’s the problem.
“The premise of the question is based on the belief that DiJonai is targeting, that DiJonai is specifically smashed or hit in Caitlin’s eyeball,” Rapinoe continued.
Sue Bird (far left) and Megan Rapinoe (near left) targeted Christine Brennan (right)
Although Clark suffered a black eye, she also dismissed the incident and said she does not believe Carrington intended to hurt her.
Still, that hasn’t stopped fans and the media from calling for a suspension.
Carrington was not suspended, nor was she even whistled for a foul on the play, two things that have fueled some fans’ belief that Clark is a victim of anti-white racism.
The plot has been a constant theme throughout the 2024 season, as the WNBA has broken all records for sales and television viewership. Many players and teams have reported racist abuse from fans, much of which has focused on the rivalry between rookies Clark, who is white, and Angel Reese, who is black.
When asked about the issue while appearing on CNBC last month, WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert compared the Clark-Reese dynamic to the NBA’s famous Larry Bird-Magic Johnson rivalry, which also included players from different races.
After the most successful regular season in league history, the current WNBA postseason runs the risk of being overshadowed by controversy.
While many Clark fans have accused the league of conspiring against its biggest star, several players have expressed frustration over racist abuse from fans.
No foul was called even though the contact left the 22-year-old in agony on the ground.
And it is not Clark or strictly his fans who are responsible. Clark, for his part, has condemned fans’ racist abuse of players.
“It’s definitely disturbing,” Clark said last month. ‘No one in our league should face any type of racism, hurtful, disrespectful and hateful comments and threats. Those are not fans. “Those are trolls and it’s a disservice to the people of our league, the organization, the WNBA.”
Bird not only absolved Clark of any responsibility, but stressed that his fans, as a whole, are not to blame.
“It’s not Fever fans, it’s not Caitlin fans,” Bird told Rapinoe on her podcast. “We’re talking about the faction of that group that is pushing racist agendas, pushing hate and creating division online by acting like bigots, acting like Fever fans, acting like Caitlin fans.”