Caitlin Clark still hopes Kelsey Mitchell will remain her Indiana Fever teammate, despite Mitchell’s recent comments about online abuse from Clark’s fans and the challenges of playing alongside one of the WNBA’s biggest stars.
During her final interview of the season, Clark condemned the hateful messages directed at Mitchell and urged the impending free agent to return to the Fever for another year.
Clark said she was “upset” that Mitchell—or anyone else—had been subjected to degrading remarks. Mitchell has spent all nine years of her professional career in Indiana.
“I saw Kelsey’s comments and, as a teammate, it makes you upset because you care about your teammates so much, and you don’t want anyone to go through something like that,” Clark said.
“I think for the people who have followed me, obviously, there is such a microscope on me, and that kind of comes with everybody I’ve been teammates with, whether that was my time at Iowa or whether that’s been here. That comes with a lot of great things, and then, at times, there can be some negatives.”
She added: “I think as far as people who have used me to demonstrate racist rhetoric or hate or discrimination, that’s not something I stand for. That’s never been something I’ve stood for. For those of you who know me, that’s not what I’m about. It’s not how I was raised, so it’s really disappointing when people do that.”
Caitlin Clark wants Kelsey Mitchell to return to the Indiana Fever despite her recent comments
Clark was addressing remarks Mitchell made Saturday during her exit interview, when the veteran discussed the difficulties of living under intense public scrutiny. Since Clark entered the league in 2024, the Fever have become one of the WNBA’s most closely watched teams.
Indiana games regularly sell out both at home and on the road, while opponents often shift Fever matchups to larger venues to accommodate demand. The team has also become a major national television draw, frequently producing the league’s highest ratings.
Mitchell’s own profile has grown during that period. This season, she set the WNBA’s single-season scoring record and the league mark for consecutive 20-point games. Late in the season, home fans also serenaded her with “M-V-P” chants.
Still, Mitchell acknowledged that she has struggled with the hostility and abuse directed her way because she plays for the Fever and shares the backcourt with Clark.
“The hardest part of being a Fever girl, especially—you guys know I’ve been a part of this a long time—but the last couple years is, I don’t think people understand how much we endure,” she said.
“If I showed y’all my DMs about the hate and, you know, the stuff that comes with being a professional athlete, but specifically being an Indiana Fever basketball player, it’s a lot that goes into that, and those days are hard as hell, man.”
Although Mitchell said she loves Clark and enjoys being part of the same backcourt, she acknowledged that playing on the same team has not always been easy.
“Having the eyes that she got, we get a lot of flak just for being on her team, and I think that comes with a lot, too,” Mitchell said. “I just think that people have got to give us grace. I think this organization is unbelievable, man, but I think that when it comes to really trying to be yourself, it hasn’t always been easy. That’s all I’ll say.”
Mitchell revealed the extent of the online abuse she receives as Clark’s teammate
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The Fever were eliminated from the WNBA playoffs last week, ending another season marked by controversy both on and off the court.
From early-season speculation about coach Stephanie White’s job and her relationship with Clark to Indiana’s first-round playoff exit, non-basketball storylines seemed to follow the team throughout the campaign.
The debate intensified after Sophie Cunningham said transgender women should be excluded from women’s sports, prompting supporters on both sides to attend games. Minnesota coach Cheryl Reeve even wore a T-shirt supporting transgender women during a Fever matchup.
White eventually criticized the team’s constant circus-like atmosphere during a press conference, accusing outsiders of trying to pull the Fever apart. Security officials twice escorted fans from games against the Las Vegas Aces, although they later returned after it was determined they had not violated the fan code of conduct policy.
After the second incident, when four-time MVP A’ja Wilson walked toward a fan whose seat was near the baseline, Aces coach Becky Hammon responded.
‘I think there’s a certain etiquette that both players and fans need to abide by, but clearly there’s something that gets – the lines get crossed – and it seems to happen here,’ Hammon said.
It hasn’t slowed down in the week since Indiana’s season-ending loss at Las Vegas either. Fever general manager Amber Cox defended the Fever fans during her exit interview Saturday.
‘The attacks on our fanbase have no basis in reality, and they need to stop, especially with members of the media,’ Cox said. ‘Every organization in the league, every organization throughout professional sports, all the way down to youth rec leagues, have to deal with occasional bad behavior from spectators. And anyone who crosses the line in an arena or online needs to be held accountable. I want to be really clear about that: There is a line, and people need to be held accountable if they cross it.’
The Fever have faced more controversy, including Sophie Cunningham’s transgender storm
There were also rumors about coach Stephanie White’s job and her relationship with Clark
Former Fever player Brianna Turner, who now plays for the Aces, used her social media account to call Cox’s comments ‘unequivocally false.’
It was hard on everyone inside the organization and yet for the second straight year, the Fever were one win away from eliminating the Aces on their home court.
And while Clark was disappointed with the result, she’s also unhappy that Mitchell or anyone else must deal with the hateful comments.
‘I think it kind of gets into this larger discussion in mainstream sports of what people go through. I think, just recently, I saw Coco Gauff came out and kind of talked about her experience,’ Clark said.
‘So any time I see something like that, you know, it makes me upset, makes me sad, makes me really disappointed, you know, because that’s not who I am. It’s not what I’m about.
‘I think for my teammates, obviously, there’s a lot of really great things that come with playing here, too, and as far as Kelsey and our future with her with the organization, I think she knows how much I love her. We’ve talked since the season ended, and there’s nobody I would rather share the backcourt with than her.’
