WNBA star slammed by fans for Caitlin Clark’s ‘cheap move’ as Seattle Storm lose to Indiana Fever

Seattle Storm’s Skylar Diggins-Smith has been criticized by fans online for taking a swipe at Caitlin Clark on Sunday.

Clark inspired the Indiana Fever to another WNBA victory, beating the Storm 92-75 at Gainbridge Fieldhouse.

The No. 1 overall pick and rookie sensation was treated quite harshly during her first season as a pro, most notably by Chicago Sky’s Chennedy Carter.

But the 34-year-old Diggins-Smith, an Olympic gold medalist and six-time WNBA All-Star, unnecessarily collided with Clark late in Sunday’s game.

Clark was whipping up the Fever fans after the final whistle when Diggins-Smith appeared to quicken her running pace to deliberately run into her opponent.

Skylar Diggins-Smith has been criticized by fans online for taking a cheap dig at Caitlin Clark

Diggins-Smith (left) was caught unnecessarily colliding with Clark at the end of Sunday’s match

Clark continued undeterred and celebrated the victory with the home fans.

Diggins-Smith was heavily criticized on social media, with fans accusing her of being jealous of Clark and bitter about her success.

One of them wrote: ‘Jealousy breeds hate and it’s sad to see that.’

Another noted: ‘She even dropped her shoulder. Clark keeps everyone on their toes in this league.’

A third added: ‘Diggs might need some time in the gym. Clark walked right through it lol.’

“Imagine being jealous of someone who put your sport on the map,” wrote another.

Another user said: ‘Typical jealous move. That player is worthless. What bad behavior!’

This came after Dave Portnoy called for the firing or suspension of a WNBA official for giving Clark a technical foul on Sunday and reprimanding her for hitting a pole.

Despite Clark’s record-breaking performance once again, the post-match conversation focused on technique and her conversation with official Tyler Ricks.

“I got a technical kick because I was mad at myself for missing a three-pointer,” Clark said.

“And then I hit the backboard, and he said that was disrespectful to the game of basketball.”

She went on to say that she had to thank Ricks for his inspiring performance in the second half of the season.

Portnoy—a diehard Clark fan who recently bet $100,000 on the Fever winning this year’s WNBA title—was less forgiving. As he wrote on X, Portnoy believes Ricks “should be suspended or fired.”

Clark scored 23 points and dished out nine assists to help the Fever defeat the Seattle Storm 92-75

Clark scored 23 points and had nine assists to help the Fever defeat the Seattle Storm 92-75.

With 232 assists so far this season, Clark broke the previous WNBA rookie record of 224, set by Ticha Penicheiro in 1998.

The No. 1 overall pick in the 2024 draft has scored at least 20 points in five of her last six games. She’s averaging 23.7 points on 47 percent shooting from the field and 11.7 assists in that span.

Indiana (13-15), which matched its 2023 win total with 12 games remaining in the regular season, has won two straight games after the month-long break for the Paris Olympics.

The Fever have won four of five games overall, going 10-5, after winning just three of 11 games to start the season.