“Michael Jordan of WNBA was assaulted” – Analyst urges suspension for DiJonai Carrington for poking Caitlin Clark’s eye
Indiana Fever rookie Caitlin Clark suffered an unfortunate eye injury during Game 1 of the first round of the WNBA Playoffs on Sunday. The Fever are playing against the Connecticut Sun in the three-game playoff series, which means DiJonai Carrington is assigned to guard Clark.
Unfortunately, Carrington’s fingernail accidentally stabbed the eye of Clark during the opening period, which gave the rookie a black eye. During the sequence, the former Iowa Hawkeyes star fell to the ground as she grabbed her eye but the officials didn’t issue a foul.
Many fans believed that the incident was the main reason why she struggled in Game 1. The Fever star finished with 11 points, four rebounds and eight assists, shooting only 4/17 from the field. This led Indiana to suffer a 93-69 loss.
On Monday, NBA analyst Jason Whitlock gave his take on the controversial no-call incident on his YouTube channel.
“The Michael Jordan of the WNBA was assaulted, has a black eye during the second half of the game because DiJonai Carrington stabbed her with her fingernails in the eye,” Whitlock said. “I’m not exaggerating. Clark’s trying to pass the ball in the first two minutes of the game and this woman swats at the basketball and somehow decides to turn her hand down and her fingernails jab ’em right in the eye of Clark.
“No foul called, no refs stopping the game … Everybody moved on. Your biggest star, your meal ticket, the reason why you have relevancy just got stabbed and assaulted, and nothing.
“DiJonai has a history with Clark. Many of these girls in the WNBA [has], but she’s at the top of the list along with Chennedy Carter in Chicago and Angel Reese, those three … Carrington needs to be suspended in Game 2.”
Whitlock talked about Clark at the 2:04 mark of the video.
So far, the league has not issued anything regarding the controversial incident.
Carrington has a history with Caitlin Clark
There is no love lost between Carrington and Caitlin Clark. Every time they play against each other, the Sun guard makes sure to announce her presence defensively, often making it hard for Clark on offense.
In June, the Sun and Fever played against each other during the regular season and it led to Carrington mocking the star. After Clark drew a foul on a drive attempt, her matchup mocked her, implying that the former college star was flopping.
Since then, Carrington has made noise on X (formerly Twitter), taking jabs at Clark, her fans and Fever fans.
