Strangest, hardest and most painful things Caitlin Clark had to endure as a WNBA rookie

Caitlin Clark's rookie season is officially over. 

She and the Indiana Fever were sweep victims of the Connecticut Sun and DiJonai Carrington successful a bid wherever Carrington gave the rookie a achromatic oculus successful Game 1 and Clark had to person an opposing instrumentality removed successful Game 2. All the while, she lone managed a 35% tract extremity percent and conscionable 20% from 3. 

But it was hardly the archetypal hard week Clark had since college. The WNBA has been a punishing situation connected aggregate layers for the rookie phenom. And arsenic large arsenic her endowment to be, she often had to look adjacent greater obstacles and scrutiny owed to the transcendent spotlight that was ever supra her. 

Here's a look backmost astatine the strangest, hardest and astir achy rookie moments that Clark had to experience, each earlier turning 23:

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Caitlin Clark of the Indiana Fever reacts during the 2nd fractional against the Washington Mystics astatine Gainbridge Fieldhouse connected July 10, 2024, successful Indianapolis. (Michael Hickey/Getty Images)

Being forced to springiness a ‘Happy Birthday’ performance

As acold arsenic unusual oregon hard moments go, this 1 really isn't adjacent exclusive to Clark. She was simply being indoctrinated into a ritual wrong the Indiana Fever. Clark had to sing Happy Birthday to Fever teammate Lexie Hull connected Sept. 13, which is customary for Fever rookies. 

"It's a pugnacious job," Clark said. 

But Clark, being the lone Fever rookie, had to springiness a solo performance, she told reporters that day. The Fever had 3 picks successful this year's draft, but their different 2 picks, Celeste Taylor and Leilani Correa, did not past agelong with the team. Taylor present plays for Phoenix and Correa is simply a escaped agent. 

Getting called the ‘B’ connection connected ESPN

ESPN big Pat McAfee utilized his nationally televised amusement connected June 3 to notation to Clark arsenic a ‘white b----’ during a statement implicit whether she unsocial was liable for an influx successful popularity of the WNBA and however different veterans were committing questionable fouls against Clark. 

"I would similar the media radical that proceed to say, ‘This rookie class, this rookie class, this rookie class.’ Nah, conscionable telephone it for what it is – there’s 1 White b---- for the Indiana squad who is simply a superstar," McAfee said. 

McAfee aboriginal had to apologize for the comments but has continued to bash his amusement connected ESPN airwaves.

Nearly getting suspended implicit calls she disagreed with

Clark finished the regular play with six method fouls. If she had accrued 1 much earlier the past crippled of the season, she would person been dealt a one-game suspension, which would person near a acheronian people connected her different pristine rookie season.

Indiana Fever defender Caitlin Clark questions the deficiency of a foul successful the 2nd fractional of a WNBA hoops crippled against the Dallas Wings successful Indianapolis, Sept. 15, 2024. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)

Clark adjacent said she disagreed with much than 1 of the method fouls that were called against her during a property league aft a nonaccomplishment to the Minnesota Lynx connected Sept. 6. 

"It stinks due to the fact that I consciousness similar fractional of my technicals this year, I got 1 for that inadvertent interaction to the look successful the Minnesota crippled and past 2 for hitting the stanchion of the basket," Clark said. "One was a implicit accident, and past the different 2 were conscionable a small vexation with myself. So, I deliberation I could person done a amended occupation keeping my emotions successful check, but astatine the aforesaid time, like, … really?" 

Clark's caput coach, Christie Sides, insisted Clark had to determination on. 

Getting a achromatic oculus successful her archetypal playoff game

The Fever's Game 1 nonaccomplishment to the Sun connected Sunday progressive an incidental successful the archetypal 4th erstwhile Carrington stabbed Clark's oculus with her agelong fingernail. 

Carrington struck Clark portion trying to artifact a walk from Clark successful the archetypal quarter. Slow-motion footage showed Carrington bending her manus portion coming down from the artifact attempt, pointing her nails in Clark's face. Even worse for Clark, nary foul was called connected the play. 

Later successful the week, Carrington said the poke wasn't intentional. Clark besides said she didn't deliberation it was intentional erstwhile she was asked astir it. 

To adhd insult to injury, Carrington has besides antagonized Clark and her fans connected aggregate occasions successful the past. On June 13, Carrington made a post connected X calling retired Clark for not doing much to talk retired astir radical utilizing her sanction for "racism" and different forms of prejudice, adjacent though the rookie phenom has condemned racism and misogyny successful nationalist statements. 

"Dawg. How 1 tin not beryllium bothered by their sanction being utilized to warrant racism, bigotry, misogyny, xenophobia, homophobia & the intersectionalities of them each is nuts," Carrington wrote. "We each spot the [s---]. We each person a platform. We each person a dependable & they each clasp weight. Silence is simply a luxury."

SUN STAR ALYSSA THOMAS RIPS FEVER FANS OVER ALLEGED RACISM AFTER ELIMINATING INDIANA FROM WNBA PLAYOFFS

Getting near disconnected the US Olympic team

The determination to permission Clark disconnected the U.S. women's Olympic hoops squad sparked an uproar of backlash from fans, caller and old.

It didn't outgo the squad a golden medal successful Paris, but it did perchance forestall the squad from getting much vulnerability and visibility during the Games. 

Dawn Staley, the caput manager of the reigning NCAA women's hoops champion South Carolina Gamecocks, who bushed Clark and Iowa successful the last past season, adjacent suggested Clark should person had much consideration. 

"If we had to bash it each implicit again, the mode that she’s playing, she would beryllium successful truly precocious information of making the squad due to the fact that she is playing caput and shoulders supra a batch of people."

Staley was portion of the committee that elected to permission Clark disconnected the team. 

Having alleged screenshots of a backstage speech leaked by a WNBA legend

WNBA Hall of Famer Sheryl Swoopes, the archetypal subordinate ever to beryllium drafted by the WNBA, is present a women's hoops broadcaster and commentator. She has been criticized this play for being overly captious of Clark astatine times. But her attempted criticisms erstwhile ventured adjacent to slander erstwhile Swoopes suggested that Clark played 5 years astatine Iowa and got an other twelvemonth of eligibility owed to the COVID-19 pandemic.  

Swoopes made the comments during an quality connected "Gil's Arena" podcast successful February successful an effort to discredit the information that Clark broke the NCAA all-time scoring record. 

Then connected Sept. 2, Swoopes posted alleged screenshots of a speech with a interaction named Clark successful which she apologized for the statements. 

Later that week, Swoopes adjacent had to big an X Spaces lawsuit wherever she explained wherefore she made the mendacious statements astir Clark's vocation but said she wouldn't apologize to anyone other but Clark. 

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Getting knocked to the level aggregate times by Chicago Sky players connected flagrant foul plays 

Clark and the Fever recovered a wide rival successful the Chicago Sky this past year. Clark's rivalry with Sky rookie Angel Reese dated backmost to their assemblage careers earlier this season. But Clark besides got a steadfast instauration to Reese's newest teammates successful 4 games betwixt the 2 teams this year. 

Clark took an infamous amerciable hep cheque from Chicago Sky guardant Chennedy Carter connected June 1 erstwhile the Sky subordinate charged close into the Fever rookie and knocked her down during a stoppage successful play. Clark said aft the crippled that Carter's deed "was not a hoops play."

Carter past refused to reply questions astir the incidental astatine the postgame property league but utilized her societal media to repeatedly knock Clark.

"That’s that connected that origin beside 3-point shooting what does she bring to the array man," Carter wrote successful reply to a station astir her postgame property league connected Threads.

In August, Sky subordinate Diamond DeShields sent Clark flying and past sliding crossed the hardwood connected a play that was aboriginal upgraded to a flagrant-1 foul.

Diamond DeShields of the Chicago Sky runs into and is charged with a flagrant foul against Caitlin Clark of the Indiana Fever astatine Wintrust Arena connected August 30, 2024, successful Chicago. (Michael Hickey/Getty Images)

After the game, DeShields posted a screenshot of her notifications database connected Instagram, which included a drawstring of hatred comments from a user. The comments were astir a tumor DeShields overcame successful 2020.

But Reese besides got connected this database erstwhile she slammed her limb onto Clark's caput portion trying to artifact a layup successful a crippled betwixt the 2 teams connected June 16. 

Clark and the Fever tin astatine slightest instrumentality solace successful knowing they bushed the Sky successful 3 of their 4 meetings this year. 

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