While Caitlin Clark seems cool as a cucumber off the court, she has had moments of fiery passion on the court in her first WNBA season.
Unfortunately for the Fever rookie, sometimes these moments manifest as an angry frustration, which can get Clark into trouble with referees.
(Getty Images)
The 22-year-old found out early on that some of her actions, from mouthing off to officials to tussling with opposing players, would result in her collecting technical fouls. While Clark has improved in that regard since her first few weeks in the WNBA, she still has picked up more technicals than nearly every other player in the league in 2024.
The more technicals a WNBA player collects, the closer that player is to facing a suspension for foul accumulation. With one month remaining in the season, Clark is toeing that line — and whether she crosses it could greatly affect Indiana’s postseason hopes.
Here’s everything to know about whether Clark will be suspended due to the WNBA’s technical foul rules.
How many technical fouls does Caitlin Clark have this season?
Clark picked up her fifth technical foul of the season Sunday in the Fever’s 92-75 win over the Storm. Shortly after missing a 3-pointer in the third quarter, she threw her fist into the padding below the basket while waiting for a Aliyah Boston to inbound the ball.
The act of frustration drew a whistle from the referee, who told Clark it was “disrespectful to the game of basketball” as she received the technical.
“I got a technical for basically being mad at myself,” she told reporters after the game. “Had nothing to do with my team, had nothing to do with their reffing, had nothing to do with the other team.”
Will Caitlin Clark get suspended for technical fouls?
The WNBA mandates that once a player or coach picks up seven technical fouls in a season, that individual is suspended for one game.
After the initial suspension, every other technical (9th, 11th, 13th, etc.) results in another one-game suspension. Additionally, fees mount the more technicals a player receives—$200 for the first three, $400 for techs four through six and $800 for seven and above.
With five technicals as of Aug. 19, Clark has 12 regular season games remaining to try and avoid picking up two more before she would be forced to take a brief hiatus.
Fever head coach Christie Sides commented on the situation after her rookie collected her most recent technical Sunday, saying they are “going to have a conversation,” and she doesn’t “need Caitlin to sit out a game.”
Clark’s first three technicals all came within two weeks of the start of the season, and it took her two-plus months to pick up two more. Nevertheless, she will have to be extra careful for the next month to ensure she doesn’t find herself sidelined while the Fever attempt to make a playoff run.
WNBA technical foul leaderboard
Clark isn’t the only player who should be worried about their technical count—Diana Taurasi and Natasha Cloud each have six and are just one bad decision (or slighted referee) away from sitting out a contest.
Here is the current WNBA technical foul leaderboard, including both coaches and players who have received multiple penalties.
