Fever coach condemns 'absolutely unacceptable' online harassment of Alyssa Thomas after Caitlin Clark foul
Indiana Fever coach Stephanie White spoke out against the online harassment Phoenix Mercury forward Alyssa Thomas has been receiving since the incident involving Caitlin Clark last week. White, who coached Thomas in Connecticut for two seasons, said the hate she was receiving was "absolutely unacceptable."
"I think as a league, as a whole, there's been so much more toxicity, racism, homophobia, straight-out nonsense, hate nonsense. And it is absolutely unacceptable," White said on Wednesday. "Most of it is coming from the online community. Most of this, in my heart of hearts, I believe, [is] not coming from WNBA fans, Indiana Fever fans. I believe that this is people who are using our league, using our players to further divisive agendas."
Fever head coach Stephanie White addresses Alyssa Thomas’ comments and “unacceptable” fan behavior: pic.twitter.com/55KB1zIX5z
— Tony East (@TonyREast) July 1, 2026
Thomas recently served a one-game suspension because her hand made contact with Clark's throat during the first half of their game on June 24. Clark played in the third quarter but left the game early because of ongoing back issues -- which also caused her to miss the following game against the LA Sparks.
Although Thomas said she didn't intentionally make contact with Clark's throat, she still accepted the punishment. However, Thomas shared on Tuesday that she and her teammates have been receiving a lot of harassment and even death threats since the incident.
White said that while it is valid for fans to be passionate about their favorite players and some criticism is welcomed and warranted, the online discussion surrounding Thomas had been taken too far and players need to be protected.
"It's not hard to not be a jerk. And if you are one of these people that are online doing this, do not call yourself a WNBA fan," she said. "Our league is about inclusiveness. Our league is about competition. Our league is about elevating, elevating women, elevating marginalized communities and being inclusive of all different walks of life. That is what our league has been about from day one. That is what our league will continue to be about. We will continue to compete at a high level and hold ourselves to a higher standard, continue to be on the forefront of social norms and we will continue to support one another collectively as a league. Players, coaches, staff, support staff, everyone. We are about elevating. We are not about demeaning, demanding. We are not about continuing this narrative. It's just absolutely unacceptable."
Alyssa Thomas says she received death threats after Caitlin Clark incident, calls out WNBA commissioner Lindsay Gibbs
On Tuesday, after Thomas spoke to reporters about the death threats, the WNBA released a statement condemning "any and all forms of hate."
"The safety and well-being of everyone in our community is always the league's top priority," the league's statement continued. "We are aware of Alyssa Thomas' comments, and what she and her teammates have experienced is completely unacceptable and not representative of the WNBA community."
Thomas served her suspension while the Mercury played the Toronto Tempo on Saturday. She will be back on the court this Thursday as her team hosts the Seattle Storm. Meanwhile, the Fever will hit the road to take on the Las Vegas Aces on Sunday. Clark's status for that game is still unknown.
Add CBS Sports on GoogleMeet Melat Kiros, the Ethiopian-born anti-Israel socialist crusader who is DSA’s rising star after stunning upset in Colorado
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Politics
Meet Melat Kiros, the Ethiopian-born anti-Israel socialist crusader who is DSA’s rising star after stunning upset in Colorado
By Ryan King Published July 1, 2026, 2:06 p.m. ETSee more of our coverage in your search results.
Add The New York Post on GoogleWASHINGTON — Democratic socialism is spreading West.
Political newcomer Melat Kiros, 29, who took down 15-term Democratic incumbent Rep. Diana DeGette (D-Col.) in a stunning primary upset Tuesday, is riding a wave of anti-Israel and anti-ICE sentiment sweeping her party.
The Ethiopian-born PhD student has pushed to abolish Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), suggested that the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks and Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas attacks were “inevitable,” downplayed suggestions that a firebombing of a Jewish rally was an act of antisemitism, and more.
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Once in the House of Representatives, which is considered likely because she’s in a safe blue district, Kiros has vowed to push Democrats as far left as possible and to oppose Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) becoming speaker.
Political awakening
Kiros refined many of her far-left views in law school at Notre Dame in the early 2020s, a period she describes as her political awakening, as the country was roiled by the COVID-19 pandemic and peak wokeness.
“I literally watched the Federalist Society handpicking some of my classmates onto the judge track in their decades-long bid to pack the courts,” she complained, according to Vox. “…I just lost faith in the system; I think a lot of young people did.”
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After law school in 2022, she joined the law firm Sidley Austin in New York, where she worked as a regulatory and enforcement associate. The following year, she was fired for writing a viral open letter lambasting law firms for pushing to crack down on antisemitism on college campuses.
“By chilling future lawyers’ employment prospects for criticism of the Israeli government’s actions and its legitimacy, you are complicit in Israel’s weaponization of anti-Semitism against legitimate concerns for the right of self-determination and the livelihood of the Palestinian people,” she wrote in the missive.
Sidley Austin demanded she take the letter down, but Kiros claims she refused and was fired as a result.
“I didn’t flinch because I stood by every word and I always will,” she boasted during her victory speech Tuesday.
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That move drew headlines and boosted her name recognition in lefty circles.
After losing her law gig, Kiros moved back to Colorado, where her family had immigrated while she was just 11-months-old. Her father had been picked in America’s Diversity Visa Lottery, per her campaign website.
Back home, she enrolled in a PhD program in public policy and worked as a barista.
Then, in the middle of last year, she decided to launch a seemingly long-shot primary challenge against DeGette, who is widely considered to be a very progressive lawmaker and has served in Congress longer than Kiros has been alive.
DeGette had the backing of the Congressional Progressive Caucus.
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But Kiros’ candidacy caught fire with the DSA and other lefty groups that were hunting for candidates to take on incumbent Democrats and push the party further leftwards.
One of the major differences between the two was Kiros’ tougher stance against Israel. DeGette faced grassroots pushback for supporting defensive aid to Israel.
Kiros, however, made tough talk against the Jewish state a feature of her campaign.
For example, she told notorious lefty streamer Hasan Piker that the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas attack was an “inevitable consequence of apartheid,” though she later clarified she wasn’t trying to say it was justified.
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Piker is a very controversial streamer, having declared that “America deserved 9/11″ and praised the “brave mujahideen” who injured Rep. Dan Crenshaw (R-Texas).
In a similar vein, she told 9News journalist Kyle Clark that the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks were an “inevitable consequence” of US foreign policy.
Kiros has stirred local controversy for downplaying the role of antisemitism in the June 1, 2025, firebombing attack at a weekly Jewish gathering aimed at bringing attention to the Israeli hostages taken by Hamas. One person was killed and a dozen were injured in that attack.
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The attacker, Mohamed Sabry Soliman, screamed “Free Palestine” before later stating that he “wanted to kill all Zionist people,” according to the FBI.
Kiros repeatedly declined to call it antisemitism and told NOTUS that it wasn’t “entirely obvious that it was just motivated by antisemitism.”
Many of her positions are similar to those of other DSA members, including support for Medicare for All, a modified Green New Deal, and mass amnesty. Kiros also wants a 10% slash in Pentagon spending.
“People are seeing that capitalism is responsible for a lot of the degradation that we’re seeing in our economy, that we’re seeing in our democracy, that we’re certainly seeing in our climate as well,” she claimed in a recent interview.
“They’re demanding a new way to organize our economy.”
Should she win in November, she will be the first Gen. Z woman to serve in Congress and the second Zoomer overall, after Rep. Maxwell Frost (D-Fla.)
She is riding a socialist revolt within the Democratic Party, as far-left candidates have won primaries across New York, Maine, Illinois, and elsewhere heading into the midterms.
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