Caitlin Clark Urges Full-Time WNBA Referees After 1-Game Alyssa Thomas Ban

3 articles · Updated · Fox News · Jul 6

Caitlin Clark said the WNBA must invest in officiating, including paying referees as full-time employees, after officials missed a flagrant foul in a recent play where Alyssa Thomas struck her in the throat.
1 game later, the league upgraded the play to a Flagrant 2 and suspended Thomas, reinforcing Clark’s complaint that postgame reviews often correct errors without fixing in-game player protection.
8 teams’ coaches and general managers told The Athletic officiating remains subpar, with complaints centered on excessive physicality, weak accountability and a review system that is slow and shows little improvement.
Several 2026 blunders have kept the issue alive, including three incorrect late calls in a Chicago Sky loss and a game in which Indiana’s Kelsey Mitchell was allowed to keep playing after fouling out.
The renewed criticism lands after commissioner Cathy Engelbert’s 2025 pledge to improve officiating, a task force and a new referee development adviser, even as the league rides record audiences and a $3 billion media-rights deal.