WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert issued a statement Tuesday condemning “hate” directed at Phoenix Mercury forward Alyssa Thomas, hours after Thomas publicly accused the league of staying silent while she faced online threats over a one-game suspension for making contact with her fist to the throat area of Indiana Fever star Caitlin Clark.

The suspension stemmed from a loose-ball scramble in the second quarter of the Mercury’s 111-109 win over the Fever on June 24 in Indianapolis. With 6:52 left in the quarter, Thomas made contact with her fist to Clark’s throat area while both players were fighting for the ball, according to the Associated Press. No foul was called on the play in real time.

The league office later reviewed the game and upgraded the play to a Flagrant Foul 2, ruling that Thomas had “recklessly” made contact with Clark’s throat area and classifying the play as a “non-basketball act.” The ruling triggered an automatic one-game suspension and a $1,000 fine, which Thomas served Saturday when the Mercury visited the Toronto Tempo.

Clark left the June 24 game in the third quarter with a back injury after appearing to tweak it earlier in the contest, according to the AP. She finished with 19 points and eight assists in 20 minutes.

Fever coach Stephanie White criticized the officiating after the game, calling the missed call “egregious” and “absolutely unacceptable,” per the AP account. The Fever organization later renewed its call for player safety in a statement, with team president Kelly Krauskopf saying “player safety should be paramount in our league.”

Thomas addressed the suspension publicly for the first time Tuesday, telling reporters she and her Mercury teammates have received death threats and been subjected to racial slurs since the incident, according to ESPN. She characterized the contact with Clark as “a complete accident” and said she did not learn of her own suspension until roughly 10 minutes before it was announced on social media.

“It’s unfortunate that it’s come to this over basketball,” Thomas said, according to ESPN. “A lot of us — myself included — didn’t even know the play took place until after the game. Now we’re being painted as thugs. There’s death threats out on us. It’s really unacceptable. It’s something that needs to change in this league, and I’m just really sick and tired of it.”

Thomas also singled out Engelbert for what she described as silence on the matter.

“We still have yet to hear anything from Cathy,” she said, per ESPN. “It’s no surprise. You could see what’s being said on social media. Yeah, it’s unfortunate, but as usual, she remains silent.”

Engelbert responded later Tuesday with a written statement.

“The WNBA vehemently condemns any and all forms of hate,” she said, according to Sports Illustrated. “The safety and well-being of everyone in our community is always the league’s top priority. We are aware of Alyssa Thomas’ comments, and what she and her teammates have experienced is completely unacceptable and not representative of the WNBA community. The league and our security team have been in contact with the Phoenix Mercury organization and remain committed to protecting all players.”

Multiple sources told ESPN’s Alexa Philippou that Engelbert and Thomas had exchanged text messages the previous week and that the commissioner had directed league security to contact Phoenix’s security team after learning of the threats against Thomas.

The episode is the latest flashpoint in an ongoing debate over how physically Clark has been officiated since entering the league in 2024, a dispute that has intensified as the Indiana Fever guard has become the league’s biggest draw. Fever coach White said after the June 24 game that officiating remained inconsistent despite the team’s offseason push for reform, telling reporters, “We spent all offseason looking at officiating, and I still say the one thing that we keep asking for is consistency,” according to ESPN’s report on the initial suspension.