Alyssa Thomas' WNBA Suspension Questioned by Mercury HC amid Caitlin Clark Controversy

Phoenix Mercury coach Nate Tibbetts doesn't believe the WNBA conducted "a thorough investigation" before deciding to suspend Alyssa Thomas for Saturday's game against the Toronto Tempo.

"The people involved were not questioned at all," he told reporters. "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."

Tibbetts also said the Mercury is supporting Thomas, and he doesn't believe the six-time All-Star is a "cheap" player.

Things got tense in the fourth quarter of Indiana's 86-77 win over Phoenix on Monday. Caitlin Clark and DeWanna Bonner were jostling for position on the elbow, and things escalated from there.

The teams turned around and met again two nights later, with the Mercury winning 111-109.

The flash point came in the second quarter as Clark fell to the floor. Thomas went to grab the ball and in the process thrust her fist into Clark's neck.

The referees didn't call a foul in real time, but the league weighed in to say Thomas was "recklessly making contact with her fist to the throat area" of Clark. That merited a flagrant-2 foul and suspension.

This has morphed into a wider conversation about the quality of WNBA officiating — a topic that has been discussed for years — and whether refs are allowing play to be too physical.

"I was more surprised that it wasn't seen by the officials in real time," Fever coach Stephanie White said. "I think the eye discipline, for lack of a better term, sometimes I feel like all the officials are watching the ball and nobody's watching the play. You have a player that's down on the ground, certainly some things are going to happen, so I was very disappointed they didn't see that in real time."

WNBA legends Candace Parker and Elena Delle Donne recounted their experiences to ESPN's Michael Voepel, explaining how this was a similar concern when they played.

"The physicality has always been there," Parker said. "It's just now you're having more visibility and new fans and new opinions coming into the game. Because we went through [so much physicality], does not mean that I think that [it has to be that way]."

Delle Donne was limited by recurring back injuries in the latter years of her career. She told Voepel that "my back wishes I had had a little more of that" in terms of more freedom of movement on the court.

White said Clark will be absent for Saturday's matchup with the Los Angeles Sparks, and she's unsure if the 2024 Rookie of the Year will need to miss additional time.