Hey, what’s going on, everybody? It’s your boy, John Liquid Dinner, back with another video. And it looks like Alyssa Thomas is about to get fined for what went down in Indianapolis. For this one, we’ve got to head straight to Indy. Let’s get into it.
So, we all know the Indiana Fever faced the Phoenix Mercury yesterday, and it was Dana Barner’s first time back in Indy since basically quitting the team. And yes, I’m sticking to it—she quit. In my eyes, there’s no other way to put it. Sure, she claimed her role on the team “just wasn’t the right fit,” but at the end of the day, all the signs point to one thing: she quit. Period.
Now, the big storyline? The boos. Dana got booed, and honestly, it was expected. But people are making such a huge deal out of it. Meanwhile, Sophie Cunningham got booed in New York the whole time, and nobody said a word! In fact, Sophie was caught on camera encouraging the boos. Check this out: you can literally see Caitlin Clark hyping it up right there—“Come on, keep booing, keep booing,” doing her best Hulk Hogan impression. Fever fans don’t run from it; they embrace it.
But Indiana? Not so much. We saw Alyssa Thomas jawing back and forth with fans, completely losing her composure. And now, to top it off, she’s getting fined for refusing to speak to the media. Yep, you heard that right. She didn’t show up for her postgame availability.
Now, if this sounds familiar, it’s because Angel Reese did the same thing last season after a Fever game. This seems to be a trend in the WNBA—when things don’t go their way, some players just duck the media. And honestly, it’s weird.
Here’s the official word: Alyssa Thomas violated the WNBA’s 2025 media access policy, which states that within 10 minutes of the game ending, each team’s head coach and two players (the leading scorer and another key contributor) must be available for postgame interviews. Alyssa and the Mercury broke that rule, and they’re likely getting fined.
And here’s the thing—I just don’t get it. She had all that energy to argue with fans, but suddenly no energy to face the press? That’s not how professionalism works. You signed up for this. Show up, take the questions, and move on.
Meanwhile, Sophie Cunningham is still making waves with her podcast. She retweeted a clip today, and I’ve got to play this part because it hits the nail on the head:
“It literally pisses me off when people say Caitlin Clark isn’t the face of the league. Who would be? Sabrina? No. We have a lot of amazing players, but let’s be real—without Caitlin, this league wouldn’t be where it is right now.”
Facts. 100% facts. Sophie said what needed to be said.
Now, speaking of the league, let’s talk viewership. Rebecca Lobo posted the numbers for last night’s Liberty vs. Lynx game—the third-most-watched non-Fever game of the season—averaging 700K viewers and peaking at 1.1 million. Solid numbers, especially considering the Fever didn’t even play in that one.
But here’s the thing: when the Fever do play, it’s a whole different level. They’re averaging 1.26 million viewers, and WNBA viewership overall is up 21% this season. That’s huge. And yes, it’s because of Caitlin Clark. Period.
So yeah, things are looking rough for Alyssa Thomas right now. Not because she’s a bad player—she’s great—but because of how she’s handling herself. If you want to be a leader in this league, you’ve got to face the heat.
Remember when Marshawn Lynch literally sat down in a press conference and said, “I’m only here so I won’t get fined”? Alyssa could’ve done the same thing! But instead, she bailed. And in this league, that’s becoming a pattern—and it’s not a good one.
Anyway, that’s it for now. Hit the comments and let me know what y’all think. Keep those notifications on because I’ve got more videos coming your way. And as always—shake the haters off. I’m out.
