Overview
- Video showed Phoenix’s Alyssa Thomas make throat contact with Indiana’s Caitlin Clark during a loose‑ball scramble on June 24, and no foul was called on the court.
- The WNBA later upgraded the play to a Flagrant‑2 on postgame review, fined Thomas $1,000 and imposed a one‑game suspension that she served.
- A Sports Business Journal report published July 15 quotes unnamed sources saying NBA commissioner Adam Silver urged WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert to reverse course and impose the suspension.
- A WNBA spokesperson told outlets the claim that Engelbert did not plan a suspension is “absolutely false,” and SBJ says it stands by its reporting, leaving the account reported but not independently confirmed.
- The episode has prompted death threats and doxxing against Thomas, prompted league security action, and intensified scrutiny of the WNBA’s postgame review power and Engelbert’s leadership, which could prompt further governance review.