Cailtin Clark‘s comment to Lexie Hull and Sophie Cunningham has sparked fears there could be tension in the Indiana Fever’s dressing room ahead of the upcoming 2025 WNBA season.
Hull and Cunningham are known for their social media presence and for showing off to their fans online, both considered conventionally attractive thanks to their blonde hair and a sun-kissed tanned skin.
And they took a moment to joke about how they loosely resemble each other with a playful photo shoot between the pair of guards, uploading a series of pictures with the caption, “Seeing double?”
The post seemed like a lighthearted attempt to bond with new teammates, but the situation quickly took a sharp turn when the star of the team, left a very blunt comment in response.
“Little less tanning. A little more bball ladies,” Clark, the 2024 WNBA Rookie of the Year, said via Instagram without any emojis or any signs of humor to show she came in good faith.
Was it a joke? Or was there an underlying tension that had yet to be addressed in the Fever dressing room? While the comment didn’t directly attack anyone, it left an uncomfortable vibe in the air.
The locker room is often where the true dynamics of a team are revealed, and with the Fever’s regular season fast approaching, the tension between the players could impact the team’s performance in their quest for a first WNBA title since 2012.
It remains to be seen what Stephanie White, the new head coach, makes of the situation or whether the 47-year-old will simply shrug it off as nothing more than playful banter.
Does Clark’s comment shows hypocrisy?
Cunningham, known for her confidence and humor, has a vibrant and unapologetic personality, both on and off the court. Her posts, often with playful captions and fashion-forward pregame outfits, show her embracing the full life of an athlete.
So her post shouldn’t come as a shock to Clark, but is there also an element of hypocrisy from the ex-Iowa Hawkeyes player too? Weeks earlier, the 23-year-old herself had shared a post featuring a bikini shot, with the caption, “Work hard, beach harder”.
It suggests that she, too, enjoys a little downtime off the court and thus shouldn’t point the finger at her teammates’ commitment to their game.
Anyhow, as the Fever head into the season, it’s clear that the players will need to find a balance between their individual personalities and their collective goal of winning; and it seems clear which side of that line Clark falls on.
Will the comment serve as a wake-up call for some players to focus more on their craft? Or will it create divisions in a team that had previously seemed so promising? Time will tell.
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