The Caitlin Clark-Alyssa Thomas contact incident from June 24 has escalated to online backlash against the Phoenix Mercury player. Despite Thomas serving her suspension, the backlash continues, even prompting the league and the coaching staff to take notice. And now CC’s biographer, Christine Brennan, has broken her silence about what he though of the foul.

“Is the league going to speak out all about the visual that will live with this league, I believe, forever?” Brennan said on the Don’t @ Me podcast. “We could look at the fact that the face of the league, Caitlin Clark, has got a fist to her throat. Caitlin Clark, who brought the charter flights, I broke the story, you know that’s the facts.”

“Caitlin Clark, with all the TV ratings, all the attendance figures that she has brought. She has made Alyssa Thomas’ life better. She’s making more money, and she is not in the middle seat anymore like some of them used to be. And instead, you’ve got the fist to the throat. She is hitting the person who has brought all of that,” she told host Don Dakich.

The source of this entire controversy stems from a sequence in Q2 during the second Phoenix Mercury-Indiana Fever matchup on June 24. In a loose-ball scramble, Thomas struck Clark in the throat with her fist. While the sequence didn’t result in a whistle on the court, it was reviewed by the league, leading to a Flagrant Foul 2 upgrade for Thomas and a one-game suspension.

Now, the debates around the league not protecting the so-called face of the league have been prevalent throughout the season. Christine Brennan emphasized it further while pinpointing the load that Caitlin Clark carries for the league.

Brennan’s assessment does make sense. In the league’s landscape, Clark has been a catalyst for its newfound relevance. With CC, WNBA games consistently crossed the 1M+ threshold for broadcast viewership. Around her, merchandise sales and in-arena attendance have skyrocketed as well.

According to a WCNC report, Clark was responsible for a 500% increase in merchandise sales. Courtesy of her popularity, the tickets for the Fever’s away games have seen a surge as well. This perfectly reflects Clark’s impact on the league’s businesses.

Behind the league’s growth, players like Alyssa Thomas have benefited as well, financially and in terms of lifestyle and comfort. For a player who is literally the backbone of this growth, Clark doesn’t deserve such harsh treatment on the court. The WNBA’s decision to suspend Thomas reflects the league’s effort to eliminate excessive and unnecessary physicality.

But as Clark’s teammate puts it on her Show Me Something podcast, “It happens every single game to her (Clark).” This is where the league has made a profound decision to limit this sort of physicality against their cornerstone, Caitlin Clark, and every other player in the league.