WNBA suspends Alyssa Thomas for throat contact on Caitlin Clark

The WNBA suspended Alyssa Thomas for one game on June 25 after ruling that the Phoenix Mercury forward made contact with Caitlin Clark’s throat in Wednesday night’s game at Gainbridge Fieldhouse. No foul was called in real time, but the league reviewed the play after the game and upgraded it to a Flagrant Foul 2.

The WNBA penalized Thomas “upon postgame review” for “recklessly making contact with her fist to the throat area” of Clark. The contact came with 6:52 left in the second quarter, and the WNBA classified it as a non-basketball act. Thomas will serve the suspension Saturday when Phoenix visits the Toronto Tempo.

Indiana lost 111-109, with Kahleah Copper leading Phoenix with 28 points and making 15 of 16 free throws. Clark finished with 19 points and eight assists in 20 minutes before leaving later with a back injury and not returning. Indiana fell to 10-8; Phoenix improved to 6-13.

Indiana coach Stephanie White called the play “egregious” and said, “The fact that it was a no-call … You got to call it.” Fever president Kelly Krauskopf said, “player safety should be paramount in our league,” and added that Indiana appreciated the league’s action.

Phoenix re-signed her earlier in 2026 after she finished as a 2025 MVP finalist and earned All-WNBA and All-Defensive First Team honors. The WNBA lists her as its all-time playoff assists leader and seventh in regular-season assists.

The league’s rules book gives officials the power to review a game after the fact, reclassify a flagrant foul, or designate a foul as flagrant even if it was not called that way during live play.