Patriot Pulse

Caitlin Clark silenced her critics amid bloodbath in WNBA

Image by wavebreakmedia via Shutterstock
Image by wavebreakmedia via Shutterstock

The WNBA has become a bloodbath for Caitlin Clark.

Every game seems to bring another cheap shot aimed at the league’s biggest star.

But Caitlin Clark silenced her critics amid a heated bloodbath in the WNBA.

Caitlin Clark gets the enforcer she desperately needed

The Indiana Fever’s Tuesday night game against the Connecticut Sun turned into something closer to a heavyweight boxing match than a basketball game.

Tensions had been simmering all season between Clark and opposing players who seem determined to knock the WNBA’s golden goose off her perch.

But this time, Clark had backup.

Sophie Cunningham, the veteran guard acquired from the Phoenix Mercury in an offseason trade, made it crystal clear that she wasn’t going to stand by and watch her teammate get pummeled.

The fireworks started early when Connecticut’s Jacy Sheldon and Clark got into a heated exchange.

"You can’t do that!" Sheldon barked at Clark during one heated moment.

Clark’s response was pure fire: "I can do whatever the f*** I wanna do!"

But the real drama came when Marina Mabrey delivered a blind cheap shot to Clark, shoving her to the ground like a rag doll just after Sheldon poked Clark in the eye.

The officials only gave Mabrey a technical foul instead of ejecting her for what looked like a deliberate attempt to injure the league’s biggest star.

That’s when Cunningham decided enough was enough.

The enforcer strikes back with martial arts precision

Sophie Cunningham isn’t just any basketball player – she’s a Taekwondo black belt who earned that honor at age six, making her the youngest ever in Missouri at the time.

Those martial arts skills came in handy when she decided to send a message to anyone thinking about taking cheap shots at Clark.

Late in the game, as Sheldon was on a breakaway layup, Cunningham delivered a hard foul that sent both players tumbling.

But it was what happened next that showed Cunningham meant business.

The veteran guard used what martial arts experts called a "Thai clinch" to take down Sheldon, wrapping her up and making sure the message was delivered loud and clear.

The arena erupted as both benches emptied and a full-scale brawl nearly broke out near the baseline.

Fans in the packed Indiana arena began chanting "SOPHIE! SOPHIE!" as their new enforcer showed she had Clark’s back.

Sports commentator Clay Travis perfectly captured what everyone was thinking on social media: "Can you guys remember a star male athlete getting treated this badly by the league as a whole? Not one team, basically every team. This is year two now of this for Caitlin Clark."

Matthew Barnett summed up what fans were feeling: "Finally a teammate got Caitlin Clark’s back after the assault she’s taken tonight. Sophie Cunningham you are a G."

But Clark got her revenge too.

The moment came when she hit a three-pointer right in Sheldon’s face.

Cunningham delivers the perfect response to her critics

The officials ejected Cunningham for a flagrant 2 foul, along with Sheldon and Connecticut’s Lindsay Allen for fighting.

But Cunningham wasn’t about to apologize for defending her teammate.

After the game, she took to Instagram and posted a photo of herself shrugging with a "don’t care" expression that perfectly summed up her attitude about the whole situation.

The message was clear: mess with Caitlin Clark, and you’ll have to deal with Sophie Cunningham.

Conservative commentator Tomi Lahren wasn’t impressed with Clark’s response to the rough treatment, saying, "But she already bent the knee to the woke mob, so it’s kind of on her now. She wanted to be the woke white guilt girl, she’s on her own."

But fans disagreed and rallied behind Cunningham’s defense of her teammate.

"Every superstar needs a Sophie Cunningham," one fan wrote on social media.

Another declared, "She shouldn’t have to pay for a meal in Indiana."

Even Barstool Sports founder Dave Portnoy chimed in, celebrating Cunningham’s no-nonsense approach to protecting Clark.

The WNBA’s Caitlin Clark problem gets worse

The incident highlighted a troubling pattern in the WNBA where jealous veterans seem determined to take out their frustrations on the league’s most popular player.

As Clay Travis pointed out, "It’s just next level dumb. Caitlin Clark is the golden goose and they’re trying to strangle the goose rather than take advantage of the golden eggs."

He’s absolutely right.

Clark has brought unprecedented attention and revenue to the WNBA, breaking television viewership records and selling out arenas wherever she plays.

But instead of embracing their meal ticket, jealous players continue to target her with cheap shots and dirty plays.

The rough treatment Clark receives goes far beyond normal competitive basketball.

She’s been body-checked, poked in the eyes, and subjected to flagrant fouls that would have other players ejected.

But the referees seem reluctant to protect the league’s biggest star, often looking the other way when opponents cross the line.

Indiana finally has Clark’s bodyguard

Fever head coach Stephanie White wasn’t happy with how the officials handled the game.

"I think it was pretty obvious that stuff was brewing," White said after the game. "When the officials don’t get control of the ballgame, when you allow them to play physical, and you allow these things to happen, they’re going to compete, and they’re going to have their teammates’ backs."

That’s exactly what Cunningham did – she had her teammate’s back when the officials wouldn’t do their job.

The Fever went on to win the game 88-71, advancing to the Commissioner’s Cup championship game against the Minnesota Lynx.

But more importantly, they sent a message that they won’t tolerate anyone taking cheap shots at their star player.

Cunningham’s willingness to mix it up has already paid dividends for team chemistry.

The veteran presence she brings to the locker room, combined with her martial arts background, gives the Fever the enforcer they desperately needed.

As one fan put it perfectly: "Don’t dish it out if you can’t take it. If you go after our star player, you’re going to get put in a headlock and thrown to the ground, simple as that."

The WNBA’s other teams have been put on notice.

Caitlin Clark now has a bodyguard, and Sophie Cunningham isn’t afraid to use her black belt skills to protect her teammate.

 

 

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