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Fever president reveals Caitlin Clark’s selfless attempt to put extra cash in away team players’ pockets: “That’s a classy, amazing person”
Fever president reveals Caitlin Clark’s selfless attempt to put extra cash in away team players’ pockets. (Photo: IMAGN)
Despite how some players have treated her on and off the court during her rookie season, Caitlin Clark tried her best to get players bonuses. Indiana Fever president Allison Barber shared Clark’s attempt to convince the WNBA to hand out extra cash to players, given the sold-out nature of her games.
At The Economic Club of Washington D.C. on Sept. 20, Barber shared some “off the record” information about Clark. The 22-year-old star guard knew her popularity helped increase attendance numbers in every game she played, so she thought of bonuses for her fellow players.
“Since this is off the record, here’s all you need to know about Caitlin Clark,” Barber said. “When we would go to away games, they would always sold out. Unbelievable. So, Atlanta (Dream)owould normally have 3,000 or 4,000 people, now they have 17,000 people. … After a few away games and all of the sellouts, Caitlin asked the WNBA if they would pay spot bonuses to the away team players.”
The Fever president and COO added:
“She said, ‘We’re making all this new revenue, and I would like the away team to benefit from that. Could they get a spot bonus?’ So, that’s the heart of Caitlin Clark. That’s a classy, amazing person. … The answer was no by the way because of the collective bargaining agreement.”
Caitlin Clark has been key to the wave of success the WNBA had this season from record-breaking attendances in almost every arena to television ratings. The current CBA is set to expire in 2027, so owners and players have plenty of time to prepare a new proposal that would increase salaries and bonuses.
Even the number of people online talking about her increased although it created some problems due to the toxicity of trolls online. The increase in popularity should be looked at as a positive thing, but players should be prepared for the increased scrutiny that comes with it.
Social media can be a rough place to be in, and these athletes should get some notes from NBA players who have gotten used to it.
Caitlin Clark speaks out against racism and hate
Caitlin Clark speaks out against racism and hate. (Photo: IMAGN)
Alyssa Thomas’ comments about racist remarks received from Indiana Fever fans put the hate the players are getting online. Caitlin Clark spoke about the issue during her exit interview on Thursday, condemning those who spew hate on social media.
“It’s definitely upsetting. … Nobody really should be facing any sort of racism, hurtful, disrespectful, hateful comments and threats,” Clark said. “Those aren’t fans, those are trolls. It’s a real disservice to the people in our league, the organization, the players in the WNBA, but there are a lot of really good fans, whether they’ve been fans for 20-plus years or whether they are new fans in our league.” [H/T IndyStar]
Clark and the Indiana Fever are in offseason mode after getting eliminated by the Connecticut Sun in the first round of the 2024 WNBA playoffs.
