The latest WNBA controversy had Alyssa Thomas catching all the heat from fans as she served a one-game suspension and paid a $1,000 fine. But for the Phoenix Mercury forward, the bigger issue was commissioner Cathy Engelbert, who, according to her, remained silent while everything around the league continued to spiral. And by publicly calling out Engelbert, Thomas has now sparked an entirely different conversation, where former basketball star Layshia Clarendon believes commissioners inevitably become the “villains” whenever the league finds itself in another controversy.

, where she connected Thomas’ frustration to what she believes has been a lingering disconnect between Engelbert and the players ever since the league’s collective bargaining negotiations earlier this year. She referred to the comments previously made by Napheesa Collier and suggested that while both sides ultimately reached a new CBA deal, the relationship itself still appears to be strained.

“Commissioners, they’re the villains. You got to blame somebody for all the things,” Clarendon said on the latest episode of No Offseason. “So, I think there’s a little bit of like, ‘She’s done things wrong,’ and she’s always going to be wrong because you’re the commissioner. You’re the person that people have to blame.

“Players do deserve a lot more, though, in terms of maybe some proactivity, and this has been a common theme, and I think as the W grows, it’s not something that’s going away. This is something the league does need to start thinking proactively about, like how do you protect players specifically when we grow, when the platform is much bigger.”

While some reports from league sources stated that “texts were exchanged” with Alyssa Thomas, the 34-year-old publicly maintained that she had “yet to hear anything” from Engelbert despite the backlash she received following her June 24 collision with Caitlin Clark.

Engelbert eventually released a public statement saying the WNBA “vehemently condemns” the abuse directed at their player and reiterated that the league, along with its security team, had been in contact with the Phoenix Mercury organization.

But the most ironic part of this whole mess is that combating situations like these has already been a priority for the league. Last year, the WNBA launched its “No Space for Hate” initiative to address online abuse and promote respect across both social media and arenas. Yet the fallout from the Alyssa Thomas incident has shown just how quickly things can spiral beyond basketball. Having played as recently as 2024 before hanging up her shoes, Clarendon knows what the growth spike did to the WNBA community.

As the WNBA continues to grow, reacting after the backlash has already taken over may no longer be enough. If Engelbert and the league want to earn their players’ trust, they’ll have to start getting ahead of moments like these instead of constantly trying to catch up.