Stephanie White says fans ‘or bots on social media’ are a problem, not Indiana Fever locker room

• Caitlin Clark and coach Stephanie White are dismissing rumors of a rift between them.
• Speculation began after a heated timeout discussion during a game against Portland.
• The two again refuted unsubstantiated reports of a sideline interaction and a divided locker room after a win at Connecticut, the Fever’s third straight.

UNCASVILLE, CT — Caitlin Clark and Stephanie White are firmly shutting any rumors, social media speculation or reports on a divide between them or the Indiana Fever locker room. And it’s not the first time they’ve had to do it.

It started when the Fever coach and her star player got into a disagreement during a timeout when Indiana was down big to Portland on May 28. The two were strongly talking to each other, with Clark seeming to throw her arms up in frustration before getting off the bench and standing up, Raven Johnson replacing her in the lineup.

Social media flared with speculation that White and Clark did not like each other or could not work together, especially after that game ended in a 100-84 defeat — their worst loss of the season so far.

But that, of course, was not the case. Clark and White did have a disagreement, but it wasn’t anything more than a coach and a player pushing each other in a frustrating game.

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“It’s two people being competitive, two people who really want to win,” Clark said on June 1. “I think a lot of those things happen all the time, and I know there’s a camera on me, and that’s how it’s going to be, but there are a lot of people out there in the media or on TV who think they know a lot of things, and they’re just blatantly wrong about a lot of things.”

Two weeks later, Clark and White are shutting down rumors that there’s division in the locker room again.

Following an 85-75 win over Connecticut on Saturday night, both Clark and White looked confused when a reporter started a question with “I wanted to address the elephant in the room” about unsubstantiated reports that the two had another interaction on the sideline at the end of the game against the Sun.

Clark received a technical foul (one she said postgame that she “deserved” and that it was “worth it”) for waving goodbye to the Sun crowd. Then, she checked out with 22 seconds left in the game with the Fever up 10 points.

But no such interaction with White happened. And any reports that the Fever locker room is divided, Clark said, has no merit.

“I think it’s speculation,” Clark said with a laugh.

Clark emphatically nodded her head along as White added: “I don’t think you’re talking about journalism. If we’re going to create news from fans on social media, or bots on social media, or whatever it may be, then that’s a problem, right? I think legitimate news sources need to report legitimate news.”

Clark responded: “I like that. Period.”

Chloe Peterson is the Indiana Fever beat reporter for IndyStar. Reach her at chloe.peterson@indystar.com or follow her on X at @chloepeterson67. Get IndyStar’s Indiana Fever and Caitlin Clark coverage sent directly to your inbox with our Caitlin Clark Fever newsletter. Subscribe to IndyStar TV: Fever for in-depth analysis, behind-the-scenes coverage and more.