On Tuesday, Phoenix Mercury star Alyssa Thomas spoke to reporters for the first time since being suspended for one game after making contact with Caitlin Clark’s throat in a game against the Indiana Fever last Wednesday. The six-time All-Star did not hold back, especially when addressing the harassment and death threats she and her teammates have faced in the wake of the incident, which spawned a nearly week-long uproar on social media and beyond over how the WNBA treats Clark.

“Crazy, you know, the play in the game, being suspended, just the whole narrative that’s being painted out there, it’s unfortunate that it’s come to this over basketball,” Thomas said, when asked about her experience over the past week. “A lot of us, myself included, didn’t even know the play took place until after the game, and now we’re being painted as thugs, and there’s death threats out on us. So it’s really unacceptable. It is something that needs to change in this league, and I’m just really sick and tired of it.”

Thomas was particularly pointed about her criticism of WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert.

“Honestly, I didn’t even know I was being suspended until 10 minutes before it was put on social media. We still have yet to hear anything from Cathy,” Thomas said. “It’s no surprise; you can see what’s being said on social media, and yeah, I mean it’s unfortunate, but as usual, she remains silent, and that’s unfortunate when our lives are being threatened.”

“The WNBA vehemently condemns any and all forms of hate,” WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert said in a statement on Tuesday issued after Thomas’s comments were reported. “The safety and well-being of everyone in our community is always the league’s top priority. We are aware of Alyssa Thomas’ comments, and what she and her teammates have experienced is completely unacceptable and not representative of the WNBA community. The league and our security team have been in contact with the Phoenix Mercury organization and remain committed to protecting all players.”

Engelbert exchanged text messages with Thomas last week and instructed WNBA security to get in touch with Mercury security after the incident, according to a person with knowledge of the situation. 

The incident occurred in the first half of the Mercury’s 111-109 win at Gainbridge Field House on June 24. It was the second time in 48 hours the two teams faced off in Indianapolis, and after the first testy affair won by the Fever, it wasn’t a surprise that the second meeting was extremely physical and, at times, heated. There were multiple controversial non-calls on players defending Clark, who left the game due to a back injury in the second half. But the play that got the most attention on social media happened during a loose-ball scramble in the second quarter, when Clark got caught on the bottom of the pile and Thomas put her fist on Clark’s throat as she went to get up. 

There was no foul called on the play, and it didn’t get much attention on the court. But when slow-motion and freeze-frame footage of the play went viral online, it created a firestorm of outrage. The day after the game, the WNBA retroactively issued Thomas a Flagrant 2 and one-game suspension.

Thomas said that her contact with Clark’s throat was an “accident” and that she didn’t even realize she had done it during the game. Still, she did not argue about the suspension itself, saying, “If that’s what they felt was necessary in that moment, then so be it.”

Her biggest concern was the league’s failure to stand up for players or protect them in the face of a torrent of abuse, some of which involved threatening players’ children and racist slurs. 

“I think the biggest thing is it’s just about our safety. We’re so concerned about the safety on the floor, but time and time again we’re having people threatening our lives, leaking addresses out there, putting crazy pictures that have nothing to do with basketball,” Thomas said. 

She said the abuse she has experienced over the past week has been far worse than anything she’s experienced in her WNBA career, including in 2024 when Thomas’ Connecticut Sun played Clark and the Fever in the playoffs. 

“You know, our families are being threatened, kids are being threatened, people are sending racial slurs and all types of stuff. There’s a difference between trolling, and there’s a difference between hatred and the hatred that we’re experiencing over a play that honestly was a complete accident, nobody even knew it happened,” she said. “It’s just unfortunate, but the league has to do better in this instance.”