Becky Hammon Risks Facing Caitlin Clark’s Fate With WNBA Comments After Aces Beat Fever

Ripping into WNBA refs has practically become a sport of its own for coaches and players. Be it the Indiana Fever, the Las Vegas Aces, or any team, no one is happy with how the game is being officiated. Complaints usually come when you lose a game, and that disappointment carries through to the post-game media conference. However, it is not the case this time with Becky Hammon taking a shot. 

After their blowout 90-68 victory evened the semifinals to 1-1, Becky Hammon was questioned about the excessive physicality in this game right off the bat. “The physicality is out of control. That’s for sure. I mean, you can bump and grab a wide receiver in the NFL for those first five yards, but you can do it in the W for the whole half court. You put two hands on somebody like that, it should be an automatic foul.” Hammon told the media.

We have had some rough plays from both sides throughout the series. Aliyah Boston elbowed A’ja Wilson in Game 1. Wilson gave it back to Lexie Hull, knocking her to the ground as the second quarter finished in Game 1. Game 2 was much more physical, with players dropping like flies on both sides. Hammon further emphasized it’s not about Fever getting favored but about the refereeing and overall physicality of the game. “I’m not saying that we’re not fouling too. Not saying that. Saying it’s out of control.”

It’s safe to say a fine is coming for Becky Hammon. I mean, Caitlin Clark was fined $200 for commenting, “Refs couldn’t stop us” after Indiana’s Game 2 win over Atlanta in the first round of the playoffs. Clark could only laugh at that. “Got fined $200 for this lol,” she wrote on X, adding a series of crying laughter emojis. “BENCH MOB WILL BE EVEN MORE ROWDY TOMORROW LETS GOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!” Ironically, this “bench mob” term was used by the league in one of their social media posts after fining her. But Hammon is not afraid of any fine, as she did not stop there, comparing the WNBA referees to the NBA. 

Hammon said, “Well, most of my assistants come from the NBA, and they’re like, “This would not fly in the NBA. This level of physicality would not fly in the NBA. There would be fights. There would be fights. We just have very well-mannered women that can get to the next play, but there would be fights.”

On the other side of the fence, even Stephanie White wasn’t happy with how Game 2 went. “Well, it’s hard for us to find flow when there is a foul call every 10 seconds. I mean, it just really is. And when they’re at the free-throw line, we can’t get up and down the floor. And that’s a challenge.” There were a total of 41 fouls called in the game, including 16 in the third quarter alone. Aces had 22 fouls to Indiana’s 19. In Game 1, there were a total of 27 fouls, with Indiana making 12. The clash has become gritty because it has been allowed by the referees and the league. As a side effect, the challenges are basically becoming obsolete. 

Becky Hammon Blasts Unnecessary Challenges

Fouls are being inconsistently called, and the players are constantly hacked. Coaches are forced to use challenges on basic and obvious out-of-bounds decisions. Stephanie White had her experience with it in Game 1, and Becky Hammon had hers in Game 2. Not even five minutes in, Hammon was forced to burn her challenge in a one‑point game.

“There’s three of you; I shouldn’t have to use a challenge on something that went off [a player’s] head,” said Hammon, “And I’m sure every coach would agree, that’s maddening. If Steph had to use her challenge in the first five minutes, that’s not ideal, especially on an out-of-bounds call that I feel like is probably the easiest play to get right.”

Even if the situation is not critical enough to go for it, the coaches usually do if it is an obvious miss from the referees. The league will need to completely overhaul how it recruits and appoints referees for the game. As the popularity rises, so do the complaints, which are spread across players, coaches, and fans. Even the play-by-play commentators are shellshocked by some decisions that have the opposite outcome to what they predicted. In addition, the frustration with the referees causes a distraction to the players and thus decreases the quality of the product. 

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