WNBA players were subject to racist abuse online and in person in the build-up to and during Indiana Fever’s and Connecticut Sun’s second game of the series. It followed a foul by Connecticut Sun’s DiJonai Carrington on Caitlin Clark in game one that left the Indiana Fever star with a black eye. Although both players said the injury was unintentional, Carrington shared an email on social media which referred to her by a racist slur and threatened her with sexual violence. The Connecticut Sun forward Alyssa Thomas said: ‘I think in my 11-year career, I’ve never experienced the racial comments [like those]from the Indiana Fever fanbase.’ The Connecticut Sun coach Stephanie White said it was ‘unacceptable’ while the Indiana Fever coach Christie Sides added: ‘It is just not acceptable when it gets personal’.
