Indy Star Writer Suspended, Will Not Cover Fever Games After Caitlin Clark Incident

May 7, 2024 Jimm Sallivan

Gregg Doyel, a longtime sportswriter with the Indy Star, has been suspended for two weeks and will not cover any Indiana Fever games this season after his press conference incident with Caitlin Clark, according to a report from Bob Kravitz.

Kravitz, a former writer at the Indy Star himself, broke the news on his Substack on Tuesday. Doyel has not published a column since April 29, despite the Pacers being in the Eastern Conference semifinals.

Doyel would not comment on the incident or related suspension when reached by Kravitz for comment. He is expected to return to work on Monday, May 13.

Doyel’s discipline stems from Clark’s introductory press conference with the Fever on April 17. During the press conference, he began a question by giving Clark her patented heart gesture. When Clark asked if Doyel liked her well-known hand signal, Doyel replied with “Start doing it with me and we’ll get along just fine,” which led to an uncomfortable look by Clark.

Reporter: 🫶

Caitlin Clark: “You like that?”

Reporter: “I like that you’re here.”

Caitlin: “Yeah, I do that at my family after every game.”

Reporter: “Start doing it to me and we’ll get along just fine.”

Caitlin: 😳

(via @IndianaFever / YT)pic.twitter.com/BBjU881K7a

— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) April 17, 2024

Doyel was widely criticized in the media for his strange encounter with Clark, so it should come as no surprise that he has been disciplined for his antics.

9 Jun 24 Jimm Sallivan

Caitlin Clark Had Classy Response to U.S. Olympic Team Snub

The basketball world went into a frenzy when the U.S. Olympic women's basketball team was announced on Saturday, mostly because Caitlin Clark was left off the roster.

While many fans were upset about this "snub," Clark reacted to the news with class by explaining how she wasn't disappointed to hear the news. Instead, she's using this as motivation to help her make the team for the 2028 Olympics.

"Honestly, no disappointment. I think it just gives you something to work for," Clark said, via Indy Star's Chloe Peterson. "It's a dream, hopefully one day I can be there. I think it's just a little more motivation. You remember that and hopefully in four years, when four years comes back around, I can be there."

Here are her full comments:

When it comes to not making the Olympic team, Caitlin Clark has nothing but praise for the 12 who made it: “it’s the toughest team to make.”
Clip: pic.twitter.com/LX59YA5Bzf
— Chloe Peterson (@chloepeterson67) June 9, 2024

Instead of just focusing on herself, Clark shifted the conversation to talk about how excited she is for the 12 women who were named to Team USA.

"I'm excited for the girls that are on the team," Clark said. "I know it's the most competitive team in the world. I know it could've gone either way of me being on the team, me not being on the team. I'm excited for them. I'm going to be rooting them on to win gold."

Clark has helped bring in record crowds to Indiana Fever games this season, and her stardom was reportedly part of the reason she was kept off the Olympic team this year as the team worried how fans would "react to what would likely be limited playing time on a stacked roster."

3 Jun 24 Jimm Sallivan

Matt Barnes Calls Out Caitlin Clark’s Fever Teammates With NSFW Message

Indiana Fever rookie Caitlin Clark, already in the spotlight given her massive following, became the talk of sports after Saturday's game against the Chicago Sky, as Clark was fouled hard by Sky guard Chennedy Carter, sparking a strong reaction from Clark herself, as well as outcry from both fans and Fever coach Christie Sides.

Matt Barnes, who co-hosts the All The Smoke podcast with fellow former NBA player Stephen Jackson, joined the chorus of voices discussing Clark, only he decided to focus less on Carter's foul and more on the reaction, or lack thereof in his eyes, of Clark's teammates to the play.

Barnes, in a post onto his account on Instagram, ripped Clark's Fever teammates for seemingly not coming to her defense on Saturday—or this season as a whole.

Former NBA Enforcer Matt Barnes
on the abuse that Caitlyn Clark has gone through in her early WNBA career 😳 pic.twitter.com/SJSsDdskbM
— Culture Ent. (@culture__ent) June 2, 2024

"So, there's a hot topic going on right now," Barnes said. "Caitlin Clark says she got cheap-shotted against the Sky. I mean, throughout the season she's been getting beat up. Hard screens, elbows, knocked down. It is what it is. She's not the first. She won't be the last."

"My issue and my question is, where the f--- are her teammates at? Where y'all at? Where are the rest of the Indiana Fever? I've seen a couple girls smirk when she's got knocked down, half-a-- to pick her up. Like, y'all are supposed to protect the asset, protect the star and although this is a team, she's the star."

Barnes, as a former enforcer for 14 seasons in the NBA, then went on to say that the Fever should be "ashamed of themselves."

Barnes is not the only person to suggest the Fever need an enforcer-type on the roster, an opinion that Golden State Warriors star Draymond Green stated in an Instagram post on Saturday—and one that Carter herself seemingly scoffed at.

As Barnes said, the WNBA is going to continue to test Clark. How the Fever respond, especially given Carter's—and perhaps others'—opinions on Clark, should be of the utmost importance to the franchise moving forward.

1 May 24 Jimm Sallivan

Caitlin Clark’s First Professional Trading Card Sells For $10,000

Caitlin Clark is now taking over the sports memorabilia industry. After dominating college basketball for the last couple years she was taken first overall in the 2024 WNBA Draft. Now her first professional card, which is part of Panini's 2024 Instant WNBA Draft Night series, sold for $10,000 according to Darren Rovell's cllct.

"The Clark Blue Viper 1/1 Auto ranks as the sixth-most expensive recorded sale of a card for the Iowa superstar. It was sold in a Dutch Auction format, with the price dropping every five minutes until the product sells out. Because of heavy interest in Clark collectibles, no drop was needed to find a buyer.

In addition to the 1/1 $10,000 card, Panini also sold other variations of Clark cards, ranging from a base card, which was priced at $9.99, to a non-autographed variant of the Blue Viper 1/1 card, which sold within minutes for $3,000."

This is just the latest indication of Clark's lasting impression on women's basketball in the sports landscape. The ratings for the women's NCAA tournament were borderline unbelievable. Then 2.45 million people tuned in to the WNBA draft to see Clark get drafted. But people shelling out serious money for trading cards is an investment. According to cllct Angel Reese and Cameron Brink also had cards go for four figures.

With Indiana Fever tickets selling fast and for record prices, it's not a question of if the WNBA will see a ratings bump, but exactly how big will it be?

US Sports News

Indy Star Writer Suspended, Will Not Cover Fever Games After Caitlin Clark Incident

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