Earlier this week, a report suggested that NBA Commissioner Adam Silver stepped in and persuaded WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert to suspend Phoenix Mercury forward Alyssa Thomas for the high-profile incident where she made contact with the neck of Indiana Fever star Caitlin Clark.
During an appearance on a panel at the CNBC/Boardroom Game Plan event Thursday, Silver was asked about the report that he intervened in the decision to suspend Thomas. While Silver did not want to talk much about his role in that decision, he did have a lot to say about Clark.
Silver Reportedly ‘Persuaded’ Engelbert
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While officials did not catch the incident during the game, Thomas was eventually suspended for one game after the WNBA reviewed the incident. However, according to the Sports Business Journal, which cited multiple anonymous sources, Engelbert was not planning to suspend Thomas until Silver stepped in and persuaded her to do so.
“WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert was not planning to suspend Alyssa Thomas for burying a fist into Caitlin Clark’s throat three weeks ago until NBA Commissioner Adam Silver implored her to reverse course and issue the discipline, multiple sources told SBJ Tuesday,” Tom Friend wrote for SBJ.
A WNBA spokesperson told the outlet on Wednesday it was “absolutely false’’ that Engelbert did not originally plan to suspend Thomas, but SBJ stands by its reporting.
Silver Weighs In
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During Thursday night’s panel, Silver was asked directly whether or not he intervened regarding Thomas’ suspension. He did not give a direct answer, but he did have a lot to say about Clark and how she is treated by fans and the media.
“Let me give you a serious answer to that question. I think that ultimately the issues around Caitlin Clark are not largely about officiating. And that particular incident is not about whether a foul should have been called at the time of the game or whether that was ultimately a flagrant non-review,” Silver [responded](https://x.com/rob_schaef/status/2077879474893303977?s=20).
“I’ve come to know Caitlin really well. She’s an incredible player and also an incredible person. And she wants to focus on being the best player she can. And she’s become a bit of a political football in this country, and I think it’s incredibly unfair to her. I don’t think that issue is ultimately about officiating. It’s become political ping pong with her. And she’s a young woman who’s trying to improve her game, focus on being the best player as she can. And I don’t even think it’s fair to her that this has become a separate storyline about one foul — should it have been called in time or should it have been called a flagrant after the fact?”
Silver went on to praise the growth that the WNBA has seen over the past several years, much of which has been fueled by Clark.
“That’s my response. People are allowed to think whatever they can, and whatever they want, about our league. But there’s so much to celebrate around the WNBA. I was part of the group that wrote the original business plan 30 years ago. And where women’s sports has come — we missed our numbers for many years in the WNBA. But then it turned the corner. You’re now seeing off the chart valuations of WNBA teams. Joe and Clara Tsai have done an incredible job here in New York with the Liberty. Caitlin came along, brought an entirely new audience — and it began when she was still in college — to the game. Young girls, women, men across the board, people who never had been paying attention to women’s basketball. And then it became a rising tide. Because as we quickly all saw, it wasn’t just Caitlin. There’s enormous talent in this league,” Silver continued.
“But as I said — do we need to improve WNBA officiating? No doubt about it. But my day job is getting complaints about NBA officiating.”
After giving anything but a direct answer to the question, Silver was then directly asked again whether or not he stepped in.
“I’m not going to comment on that, because I don’t think it’s fair to Caitlin — and to Cathy Engelbert either. I think that’s not the real issue here. What people are trying to make a larger issue around that — not as to whether that was a flagrant foul or not. Obviously, the league decided after the fact that not only should a foul have been called, but it was a flagrant foul,” Silver responded. “Yes, we need to improve WNBA officiating, and there’s lots of work to do on NBA officiating as well, but I really think there’s an opportunity to support Caitlin and say, let her be the best basketball player she can be.”