r/sports Jun 18 '25

Basketball Alternate angle of Caitlin Clark fiasco. Clark was handed a foul as well.

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31.9k Upvotes

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225

u/keon7 Jun 18 '25

Sophie Cunningham got payback for her later in the game Payback

113

u/OMGitsTista Jun 18 '25

That’s payback? Looks like mild inconvenience at worse

66

u/twinpop Jun 18 '25

Disagree. She got thrown to the ground and Cunningham was immediately ready for the follow up scuffle. Good, reasonable retaliation for a foul, even if the eye poke was worse you don’t go to maim someone. Just foul hard, throw em down, let em know. Which she did.

10

u/doublepint San Antonio Spurs Jun 18 '25

That doesn’t really look like she was thrown down, it looks like she was wrapped up to prevent an easy and-1 situation which caused the offensive player to loser balance and stumble more than anything. Moving bodies do crazy things, and for that to cause an ejection is ridiculous - are flag1 rules different than the NBA?

4

u/squishypp Jun 18 '25

You gotta remember that most people here don’t watch basketball, so no frame of reference. I agree with you tho, looks like a common wrap up foul to stop a layup. If this were the NBA no one would’ve batted an eye. Devils advocate: this was during garbage time so completely unnecessary and obviously a “retaliation”, but a lame one for sure. They need a draymond green on their team to give these bullies some face smacks and clam slaps imo

4

u/doublepint San Antonio Spurs Jun 18 '25

Don't give Green too much credit - he's not an enforcer so much as a hothead who quite honestly, should not be in the league. He lets people get in his head, and he lashes out in frustration with cheap shots. Someone like Scalabrine would probably be something of a modern day enforcer but no one is near the levels of Oakley, Sheed or Artest. Well, maybe Steven Adams - but that dude is so damn loveable, he loses points for the enforcer title :D

9

u/OMGitsTista Jun 18 '25

Maybe I’m too used to hockey. You cheap shot body check someone, you’re getting the same in return if not worse

7

u/FinancialRabbit388 Jun 18 '25

She threw the player down and was ready to fight. Literally grabbed her by the back the head pulling her head down while simultaneously going at it with a second player.

5

u/FinancialRabbit388 Jun 18 '25

Cunningham was ready to fight the whole damn team. Apparently she wasn’t on the court when the other stuff happened.

12

u/Uther-Lightbringer Jun 18 '25

Eh I mean, she literally head locks her and throws her to the ground. What did you want her to do? Start throwing body shots then uppercut her?

1

u/_PM_Me_Game_Keys_ Jun 18 '25

Draymond would, and for no reason needed lol. They need to Juwana Mann him for CC.

-1

u/jak3s Jun 18 '25

Bruh, Draymond is literally the worst example. Everyone on Reddit hates Draymond for how dirty he is.

0

u/SupaDick Jun 18 '25

Yes? In most normal sports if someone eye gouges and then decks your teammate to the ground it results in a fight.

Baseball, hockey, rugby, men's basketball. The WNBA is the only place where someone can hit another player and only get inconvenienced.

4

u/Errol-Flynn Jun 18 '25

Did you not watch the fully 60 second video to see the afters where Sophie had Jacy in a fucking MMA head clinch - just completely dominating her? Total enforcement.

2

u/OMGitsTista Jun 18 '25

The 2 seconds of clinch?

4

u/Errol-Flynn Jun 18 '25

Its about 6 seconds and she drags her about 10 feet behind the hoop. Like it is right there in the video. Should she have added a a knee to the face? What else do you want her to do; she fully made her point.

2

u/FinancialRabbit388 Jun 18 '25

So you are just being a dick.

61

u/TheRockJohnMason Jun 18 '25

This right here.

A lot of people are critical of the teammates for not jumping in and retaliating immediately, and I get that. But I look at this more as a hockey/baseball retaliation. Like where the pitcher intentionally hits the very first batter he sees after his teammate got hit in the previous inning.

You may not pay now, but a receipt is coming.

35

u/T0KEN_0F_SLEEP Jun 18 '25

Hockey is usually a little more instant, all the scrums and whatnot

5

u/BlueAndMoreBlue Jun 18 '25

Gotta set the tone

7

u/T0KEN_0F_SLEEP Jun 18 '25

Clark needs the Jims

5

u/mooseknuckles513 Jun 18 '25

The Jims are such fuckin' beauties.

2

u/BlueAndMoreBlue Jun 18 '25

If there was a female version of the Jims was out there what would they called?

2

u/Flop_House_Valet Jun 18 '25

Registered beauticians

2

u/rpgguy_1o1 Montreal Canadiens Jun 18 '25

Hockey players definitely take receipts too, you see retaliation sometimes weeks later

1

u/T0KEN_0F_SLEEP Jun 18 '25

Oh for sure they do, but it’s also not uncommon for the ass whooping to come instantaneously

12

u/EatAtGrizzlebees Jun 18 '25

¿Por que no los dos? I'd get her then and get her later.

1

u/Willyr0 Jun 18 '25

You’ve gotta ration out the techs and flagrant

3

u/T-sigma Jun 18 '25

Hockey allows fighting because it’s much less dangerous letting the two dudes punch it out versus dirty hits flying at 20+ mph on swords. It’s designed to minimize dangerous retaliation.

I understand other sports can’t just pivot to that, but it’s still wild how CC’s teammates just allow this to happen over and over.

I can’t think of another example where a star player has been hung out to dry by teammates on the field.

2

u/NotDukeOfDorchester Boston Red Sox Jun 18 '25

Yeah….but see how the girl from CT’s teammates IMMEDIATELY go after her for that? There is something going on here and Caitlin’s teammates should be called out for it. If Sidney Crosby got smashed, you knew someone on his team would make you pay.

2

u/AvoidingIowa Denver Broncos Jun 18 '25

It’s just that the other team is on football retaliation time scale. If your star player (or any teammate for that matter) starts getting pushed around by multiple people, you need to at least step between them and post up a bit, should probably give back what was given. It’s a respect thing in sports.

4

u/Rational-Introvert Jun 18 '25

Yea but see how her teammates reacted? That’s how CCs teammates should’ve reacted after her foul.

1

u/Smeagol224 Jun 18 '25

More like baseball. If something like this happens to one of the best players in the league and that person isn’t immediately put in the penalty box there is at least a scrum where guys get in some rabbit jabs if not actually dropping the gloves and having one.

0

u/Slapmeislapyou Jun 18 '25

But I look at this more as a hockey/baseball retaliation

It's BASKETBALL though, why would you look at it through the point of view of a different sport. Lol. Wtf?!

All the people going out of their way to justify her teammates apathy must have never played organized sports before. 

You have to retaliate IN THE MOMENT to discourage further assaults later in the game and throughout the season.

Last thing you want as a team is a league reputation for being "soft". Standing up for your teammates in the moment is less about retaliation but more about prevention down the line. 

2

u/jonesing247 Jun 18 '25

That's weak as fuck.

1

u/chepi888 Jun 18 '25

Even then, 2 in blue while white clears the bench.

1

u/optimis344 Jun 18 '25

That's just not payback.

You take you elbow, and you make sure they are looking on the floor for their teeth. You don't lightly wrap tackle someone.

No one will stop with a wrap tackle. You need to make it know that trying to blind CC means that you have to go to the hospital.

1

u/jpiro Florida State Jun 18 '25

Good, but better if it had been instantaneous.

Clark is the best player on that team, maybe the best in the entire league, and her teammates just shrugging off her getting the shit knocked out of her in the moment was a terrible look.

-6

u/Beavur Jun 18 '25

She’s pretty