Caitlin Clark breaks yet another WNBA record as ‘entitled’ Fever star called out for ‘blatant favoritism’ from refs

May 29, 2026 - 10:15

Caitlin Clark just continues to make more WNBA history.

Despite a 90-88 loss to the Golden State Valkyries on Thursday, the Indiana Fever star – who has been subject to criticism since the start of her third season – became the fastest player in WNBA history to record over 500 assists.

Clark became the fastest player to 500 assists in WNBA history on Thursday, doing so in 59 games

In the defeat, she tallied 16 points, four rebounds, six assists three steals and a block in the game, with her third assist of the game to Sophie Cunningham in the second quarter being the one that entered her name atop the history books.

The 24-year-old achieved the feat having done so in just 59 career games, surpassing that of Seattle Storm icon Sue Bird (82 games) and New York Liberty star Sabrina Ionescu (84 games).

By notching her 500th career assist, she now qualifies on the all-time ranks, with her 8.6 assists per game across her three-year career thus far the best average in league history.

But this wasn’t Clark’s first game making history this season.

In the 2026 season opener against the Dallas Wings on May 9, the former No. 1 overall WNBA Draft pick became the fastest player in WNBA history to record 1,000-plus points, 250-plus rebounds and 250-plus assists.

Clark did so in just the 54th game of her career, surpassing previous record-holder Diana Taurasi’s mark of 62 outings.

Furthermore, the Fever guard notched her 12th game with at least 20 points and 10 assists in a win over the Seattle Storm on May 17, extending her all-time record.

But it gets even better, as the Fever star did so on that night in under 25 minutes played, seeing her become the first player in league history to do so.

For context, Courtney Vandersloot trails Clark with just 10 such games, despite enjoying a 15-year career in the league.

Referees criticized for ‘blatant favoritism’ towards Clark

Despite her huge talent, and ceiling to become one of the all-time greats of the WNBA when her career is all said and done, some are of the belief that Clark gets a different whistle than some of the other stars in the league.

Clark appears to get some favorable calls from the refs

Cari Champion believes the referees, and the league as a whole, 'coddle' Clark — Cari Champion believes the referees, and the league as a whole, ‘coddle’ Clark

Longtime sports commentator Cari Champion holds a very strong opinion in regard to that particular theory, suggesting that game officials hold “blatant favoritism” towards the two-time All-Star.

“That type of blatant favoritism annoys the hell out of me,” Champion said Wednesday on her Flagrant & Funny podcast. “I don’t know if this is her fault, because I think it might be unfair for me to say that this is her fault.

“But at the same time, it’s like, why is she getting this special treatment? And it just is, yet again, another example of the league and its fans… being so precious with her.”

“The more we get to catch these glimpses of Caitlin Clark, I’m like, ‘I don’t like you. I don’t like the way you behave on the court.

“And the league is positioning you to be its superstar because you are, and with leadership comes certain responsibility. And if you don’t want that responsibility, I understand that.

“But the way that you behave, this entitlement, the way you are talking to your coaches… you enjoy that. So if that’s what you enjoy, if you want to be the villain, if you want to be the tough person … then let it be.

Valkyries veteran Tiffany Hayes appeared to call out Clark

“Because we’re coming at you the same way we could come at anyone else. And her fans need to recognize that. Like, she chooses that behavior.”

During a previous game against the Valkyries on May 23, Clark got into it on multiple occasions with 14-year veteran Tiffany Hayes.

“They’re never going to start calling the fouls on her,” Hayes could be heard saying on a microphone after the game. “If they did, she would never get to play the game.”

Hayes’ then took to social media platform Threads where she voiced her frustrations further, drawing criticism for engaging in some online posts via likes and actual responses, including one from a fan who threatened violence against Clark.

But Champion argues that it’s not just the referees, but the WNBA as a whole that are allowing things to slide from their hugely marketable superstar.

“I think the league is not handling her well,” Champion further acknowledged. “I don’t think coddling her behind the scenes is going to create what they think it’s going to create.”

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