A myriad of White fans have supported the WNBA since the league's inception, and they've backed Black players like Maya Moore, Lisa Leslie and Sheryl Swoopes with the same enthusiasm as they have White players like Sue Bird, Diana Taurasi, and Lauren Jackson.They don't hate them because they're "new," either.Players and media all want to see the league grow because it puts more money in their pockets or eyeballs on their stories.Las Vegas Aces center A'ja Wilson talks to referees after she confronted a fan during the first round of the 2026 WNBA playoffs against the Indiana Fever at Gainbridge Fieldhouse.
(IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect)DETAILS EMERGE IN INCIDENT BETWEEN ACES STAR A'JA WILSON AND FEVER FAN DURING PLAYOFF GAMENo, the reason there is such contempt for Indiana Fever fans — who seem to endure a new slight or attack every week — is for one reason: They're viewed as conservative.Former ESPN anchor Cari Champion put it about as plainly as possible in a podcast a couple weeks back when she said Fever star Caitlin Clark is "an avatar for middle America" and represents a fan base that "wants to spread hate." Translation: People who live in live flyover states are likely to be as backward as they are bigoted.A couple months earlier, CNN contributor Leah Asmelash wrote a column entitled: "How the right wing decided to care about women's basketball in Indiana," in which she zeroed in on conservatives' support for Clark and fellow Fever guard Sophie Cunningham.Before that, the Guardian's Manny Fidel published a piece entitled "The right's fury over Caitlin Clark is about everything except Caitlin Clark," with Fidel noting how "politicians, pundits and fans from across the right decried the decision" of Clark being left off the Olympic team.How he knew that the fans upset with the snub were on the right is unclear.
That has simply become the assumption.First off, there is no way to know whether the majority of Fever fans are conservative or not.It's likel...