DiJonai Carrington is facing fresh criticism from WNBA fans after another pair of rough moments on court came just days after her heavy collision with Sophie Cunningham.
In the Chicago Sky’s 91-71 defeat to the Golden State Valkyries on Wednesday night, Carrington first drew attention when she appeared to catch Cecilia Zandalasini near the eye while reaching in to disrupt a pass.
The sequence quickly reminded many viewers of Carrington’s 2024 incident with Caitlin Clark, when the Indiana Fever guard was left with a black eye after contact to the face.
Not long after, another controversial play unfolded as Tiffany Hayes attacked the basket with Carrington positioned in front of her and both arms raised defensively.
As Hayes moved past, Carrington’s right arm came down into Hayes’ face despite the ball being out of reach, with the contact landing squarely on the driving player.
The latest scrutiny follows Saturday’s game, when Carrington struck Fever player Sophie Cunningham from behind around the head and neck area during a layup, sending her to the floor as the shot dropped. Officials reviewed the play, upgraded it to a Flagrant 2, and ejected Carrington.
Carrington appeared to catch Cecilia Zandalasini near the eye while trying to make a defensive play
The moment drew comparisons to Carrington’s 2024 contact with Caitlin Clark
Carrington then caught Tiffany Hayes in the face with her arm as she drove to the basket
WNBA fans made their feelings about Carrington clear after she committed to more brutal fouls
Carrington then sparked a WNBA race storm by posting ‘white privilege’ on Threads from the locker room just moments after her ejection.
But, after her latest aggressive antics, fans took to social media to blast Carrington’s continuous foul play.
One posted: ‘LOL! She spreads her arms, not caring where they land – scratching faces and poking eyes. I see what she’s doing. Maybe she doesn’t belong in basketball.’
Another commented: ‘Consistent cheater, clearly’.
‘That’s not defending, that’s just throwing out random limbs and hoping for the best,’ a third responded.
‘She is either doing that on purpose or the clumsiest player ever to play the game. Either way she is a danger and should not be on the court,’ another fan wrote.
Another called Carrington’s repeated foul play ‘insane’ and another demanded she be ‘kicked out’ of the WNBA.
One fan commented: ‘If the league doesn’t step in here the players will start to police themselves and then you have chaos’.
Carrington claimed her vicious foul on Cunningham was ‘unfortunate’ and ‘never intentional’ when she returned to the court Monday night.
Speaking after she scored a career-high 26 points in the 97-88 loss to Seattle, Carrington said of the foul: ‘It was unfortunate that I made contact with her in the way that I did, but it was never intentional.
‘And, look, it might happen again. That’s just how I play. I’m gonna always go all out.
‘I’m not gonna just let an open layup happen. But like I said, I’m never intending to hurt anybody, regardless of the outside noise or whatever the situation may be.’
When asked whether Cunningham should have been penalized for her angry reaction to the foul, Carrington continued: ‘I would just love consistency across the board when it comes to things like that.
‘Whether it’s the foul that I commit, whether it’s the reaction or retaliation, I would just love for it to be consistent across the board, regardless of the name on your jersey or your skin color or the score of the game, whatever.
‘I don’t think we’re there yet. That’s something that I’ve talked to the league about, as well. I think that will eliminate a lot of frustrations we all have.’
Earlier on Monday, Carrington also addressed the ‘white privilege’ post she shared on Threads from the locker room just moments after her ejection.
Carrington smashed Sophie Cunningham across the face during their heated game last week
A furious Cunningham had to be held back by teammates after she was floored by a nasty foul
Many, including podcaster and former NFL linebacker Emmanuel Acho, assumed the ‘white privilege’ referred to officials’ decision to eject an African-American player for fouling a white rival.
But Carrington, who has two degrees from Stanford, didn’t exactly clear up what the meaning of the post was and only added further fuel to the fire.
‘I’ve never once claimed that the assessment of the foul was white privilege (that was your assumption),’ the 28-year-old San Diego native wrote on X.
‘Try exercising your critical thinking skills, I know you studied psych. Furthermore, I’m the LAST thing from ignorant or asinine when it comes to speaking on ‘white privilege’, do ya research on that one.
‘I actually went to school, one of the top universities might I add, to educate myself on this exact subject,’ continued Carrington, who has degrees in psychology as well as African and African-American Studies.
‘I would never use that term as a rhetorical weapon knowing the historical and social weight it holds without having the proper evidence to substantiate it.’
