Nate Tibbetts Fires Back At Fever Coach Over Jab About Alyssa Thomas’ Alleged ‘Cheap Shot’

· Yahoo Sports

USA Basketball

Phoenix Mercury head coach Nate Tibbetts is firing back at the WNBA for suspending Alyssa Thomas after a Flagrant Foul 2 on Indiana Fever star Caitlin Clark. Ahead of the Mercury’s Saturday contest against the Toronto Tempo, Tibbetts, who has coached for the Cleveland Cavaliers, Portland Trail Blazers, and Orlando Magic, criticized the league and even clapped back at Fever head coach Stephanie White, who said Thomas took a “cheap shot” at Clark.

Visit casino-promo.biz for more information.

The WNBA Suspended Alyssa Thomas Over Her Flagrant Foul 2 On Caitlin Clark

For those who may be unfamiliar with what went down during last Wednesday’s game between the Mercury and Fever, Thomas landed on top of Clark, and a video showed her pushing her fist into Clark’s throat while making a play for the ball.

The WNBA released a statement after the contest, saying she would be suspended for a game for “recklessly making contact with her fist to the throat area of Indiana Fever guard Caitlin Clark.”

Fever Coach Stephanie White Calls Out Alyssa Thomas Over ‘Cheap Shot’ On Clark

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Yahoo Sports (@yahoosports)

Fever head coach Stephanie White called out Thomas for her move during the team’s post-game interview, calling it “egregious.” She also criticized the league’s officials, saying, “The fact that it was a no-call…I brought it to the attention of the officials at halftime, yet we still had 11 fouls in the fourth quarter to their two?”

White went on to say that Clark, a “generational talent,” wasn’t being protected by the league and claimed she was the target of “absolutely unacceptable … cheap shots.” She added, “Absolutely unacceptable. Absolutely unacceptable,” according to The Blast.

White Had More To Say About The Referees After The Game

MEGA

That wasn’t the only thing White, who previously coached Thomas when she played for the Connecticut Sun, had to say about last week’s game.

She blasted the refs for failing to call a foul on what she believed was a “reckless closeout” during the game, calling the move “absolutely disrespectful.”

“The landing spot? When you went to review it, and she still comes down on top of another foot? I don’t know. Because to me that’s like a do-over on a test, how do you screw it up again? When you have these things continue to happen time and time and time and time again, eventually it gets frustrating,” White said.

Tibbetts Calls Out White Over Comments About Alyssa Thomas

Tibbetts took some time to address the matter before their game against the Tempo on Saturday, June 27.

“The people in this league know who AT is. She’s a competitor, she’s a winner and she’s tough. The one thing she is not is cheap,” Tibbetts shared. “To say that we had two cheap shots in that game, to me, is ridiculous. Steph knows AT, she got the opportunity to coach AT for two years, and she knows what AT stands for and what she’s about.”

While Tibbetts and White haven’t coached together in the WNBA, the pair are part of Kara Lawson’s Team USA staff, and recently spent time coaching the women’s team for the FIBA World Cup qualifying tournament. They’re both expected to be part of the staff when the team heads to Germany later this year for the World Cup.

“This was not a thorough investigation in my opinion,” Tibbetts said about Thomas’ suspension. “The people involved were not questioned at all. It’s extremely disappointing. No one from the league called AT, our security team or myself about what we felt like happened in this situation. There is a protocol to be followed.”

Sports Pundits Speak On The Recent Situation

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Nightcap (@nightcapshow_)

Sports pundits, including Shannon Sharpe and Stephen A. Smith, commented on the foul against Clark and implied that Thomas went too far.

“Even if you say intent, because intent only matters to the individual committing the act—Caitlin Clark’s throat is still hurting whether she intended to do it or not,” Sharpe said on an episode of “Nightcap.”

He went on to say that Thomas’ foul didn’t seem natural; therefore, she deserved punishment. “So, I have no problem with them upgrading this and suspending her because of the history we have seen,” Sharpe said. “We have seen acts that are not basketball-related. That is not a basketball act that she did. She deserved to be suspended.”

Smith, meanwhile, said that while Clark isn’t completely innocent on the hardwood, players should respect what the Iowa alum has done for the league.

“I believe some people have failed to appreciate the mantra that a rising tide lifts all boats. Ride this cash cow till the wheels come off,” he said. “They did it in the NBA with Magic Johnson. They did it with Michael Jordan. That’s how you do this.”

“You find somebody who galvanizes people and ingratiates themselves with the public at large in such a way that everywhere they go and whatever they do, everybody wants to watch. You don’t resent that. You feed off it to build your own,” he finished.

The Nate Tibbetts Fires Back At Fever Coach Over Jab About Alyssa Thomas’ Alleged ‘Cheap Shot’ first appeared on The Blast

Read full story at source