WNBA COMMISSIONER REPORTEDLY HAD TO BE 'PERSUADED' TO SUSPEND ALYSSA THOMAS FOR CAITLIN CLARK INCIDENT

Phoenix Mercury forward Alyssa Thomas (25) scrambles to get up over Indiana Fever guard Caitlin Clark (22) on Wednesday, June 24, 2026, during a game at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis. The Phoenix Mercury defeated the Indiana Fever, 111-109.

Last month, the WNBA made a rather high-profile decision to suspend Phoenix Mercury forward Alyssa Thomas for pushing on the neck of Indiana Fever star Caitlin Clark during a game. However, according to a new report, the league’s commissioner had to be persuaded to do so.

While the incident and the subsequent suspension became one of the biggest talking points in sports over the past several weeks, it sounds like WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert was not originally planning to suspend Thomas for the incident until NBA Commissioner Adam Silver stepped in.

Thomas Suspended

The incident in question occurred during the June 24 showdown between the Fever and the Mercury. Both Clark and Thomas fell to the floor. While getting up, Thomas pushed onto Clark’s neck in what she has since described as a “complete accident.”

While Thomas was not even assessed a common foul during the game, the league later suspended her for one game with a $1,000 fine.

Following her suspension, Thomas expressed her frustration about the lack of communication from the league, claiming that she didn’t even know about the suspension until about 10 minutes before the news hit social media. She also specifically called out Engelbert for her silence on the matter while she was receiving death threats from fans.

“We still have yet to hear anything from Cathy [Engelbert],” Thomas said. “It’s no surprise. You could see what’s being said on social media. Yeah, it’s unfortunate, but as usual, she remains silent. That’s unfortunate when our lives our being threatened.”

Engelbert did eventually make a statement saying that the league “vehemently condemns any and all forms of hate,” but it came after Thomas’ comments criticizing her.

Clark agreed with the league’s decision to retroactively declare the foul a flagrant foul, but she also condemned the hate that Thomas was receiving on social media.

Engelbert Had to Be Persuaded

While the league’s execution, messaging, and response to Thomas’ suspension was messy at best, it sounds like there could be a reason why: Engelbert was reportedly never planning to suspend Thomas in the first place.

According to a report from the Sports Business Journal, which cited multiple anonymous sources, Engelbert was not planning to suspend Thomas until NBA Commissioner Adam Silver stepped in and persuaded her to do so.

“WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert was not planning to suspend Alyssa Thomas for burying a fist into Caitlin Clark’s throat three weeks ago until NBA Commissioner Adam Silver implored her to reverse course and issue the discipline, multiple sources told SBJ Tuesday,” Tom Friend wrote for SBJ.

It’s worth noting that a WNBA spokesperson told the outlet on Wednesday it was “absolutely false’’ that Engelbert did not originally plan to suspend Thomas, but SBJ stands by its reporting.

- Dave Kelsey

REACTION TO ADAM SILVER'S COMMENTS ON FLOPPING IN THE NBA | GET IT UP | NBA ON ESPN

 

NBA COMMISSIONER ADAM SILVER ON THE LUKA AND ANTHONY DAVIS TRADE

 

NBA BANS JONTAY PORTER AFTER GAMBLING PROBE SHOWS HE SHARED INFORMATION, BET ON GAMES

The Canadian Press via AP

 Toronto Raptors player Jontay Porter was banned for life from the NBA on Wednesday after a league probe found he disclosed confidential information to sports bettors and wagered on games, even betting on the Raptors to lose.

Porter is the second person to be banned by Commissioner Adam Silver for violating league rules. The other was now-former Los Angeles Clippers owner Donald Sterling in 2014, shortly after Silver took office.

In making the announcement, Silver called Porter's actions “blatant.”

“There is nothing more important than protecting the integrity of NBA competition for our fans, our teams and everyone associated with our sport, which is why Jontay Porter’s blatant violations of our gaming rules are being met with the most severe punishment,” Silver said.

The investigation started once the league learned from “licensed sports betting operators and an organization that monitors legal betting markets” about unusual gambling patterns surrounding Porter's performance in a game on March 20 against Sacramento. The league determined that Porter gave a bettor information about his own health status prior that game and said that another individual — known to be an NBA bettor — placed an $80,000 bet that Porter would not hit the numbers set for him in parlays through an online sports book. That bet would have won $1.1 million.

Porter took himself out of that game after less than three minutes, claiming illness, none of his stats meeting the totals set in the parlay. The $80,000 bet was frozen and not paid out, the league said, and the NBA started an investigation not long afterward.

“You don't want this for the kid, you don't want this for our team and we don't want this for our league, that's for sure," Raptors President Masai Ujiri said Wednesday in Toronto, speaking shortly before the NBA announced Porter's ban. “My first reaction is obviously surprise, because none of us, I don't think anybody, saw this coming.”

Later, after the NBA revealed the ban, the Raptors said they are "fully supportive of the league’s decision to ban Jontay Porter from the NBA and are grateful for the swift resolution to this investigation. We will continue to cooperate with all ongoing inquiries.”

The league has partnerships and other relationships with more than two dozen gaming companies, many of whom advertise during NBA games in a variety of ways. Silver himself has been a longtime proponent of legal sports wagering, but the league has very strict rules for players and employees regarding betting.

AP

And what Porter was found to have done was in violation of the Collective Bargaining Agreement, which states: “Any Player who, directly or indirectly, wagers money or anything of value on any game or event in the Association or in the NBA G League shall, on being charged with such wagering, be given an opportunity to answer such charges after due notice, and the decision of the Commissioner shall be final, binding, and conclusive and unappealable.”

Silver cautioned last week that this move was possible, saying what Porter was accused of represented “cardinal sin” in the NBA. Porter has not commented since the investigation began, and never played for the Raptors again — he was listed as out for all of Toronto's games for the remainder of the season citing personal reasons.

The league also determined that Porter — the brother of Denver Nuggets forward Michael Porter Jr. — placed at least 13 bets on NBA games using someone else's betting account. The bets ranged from $15 to $22,000; the total wagered was $54,094 and generated a payout of $76,059, or net winnings of $21,965.

Those wagers did not involve any game in which Porter played, the NBA said. But three of the wagers were multi-game parlays, including a bet where Porter — who was not playing in the games involved — wagered on the Raptors to lose. All three of those bets lost.

“While legal sports betting creates transparency that helps identify suspicious or abnormal activity, this matter also raises important issues about the sufficiency of the regulatory framework currently in place, including the types of bets offered on our games and players,” Silver said. "Working closely with all relevant stakeholders across the industry, we will continue to work diligently to safeguard our league and game.”

Porter was on what is called a two-way contract, meaning he could play for both the Raptors and their affiliate in the G League. His salary for this year was around $410,000; had the Raptors signed him to a standard NBA contract next season, as seemed possible, his salary would have exceeded $2 million.

The 24-year-old Porter averaged 4.4 points, 3.2 rebounds and 2.3 assists in 26 games, including five starts. He also played in 11 games for Memphis in the 2020-21 season.

ESPN first reported the investigation, which it said surrounded Porter’s performance in games on Jan. 26 and March 20. In both games, Porter played briefly before leaving citing injury or illness. Porter played 4 minutes, 24 seconds against the Los Angeles Clippers in the first of those games, then 2:43 against Sacramento in the second game.

In both of those games, Porter did not come close to hitting the prop-wager lines for points, rebounds and 3-pointers that bettors could play at some sportsbooks. For example, one set of prop wagers for Porter for the Clippers game was set at 5.5 points, 4.5 rebounds and 1.5 assists; he finished with no points, three rebounds and one assist. For the Kings game, they were around 7.5 points and 5.5 rebounds; Porter finished that game with no points and two rebounds.

The league said its probe “remains open and may result in further findings,” and that those findings are being shared with federal prosecutors.

- Tim Reynolds 

MEXICAN FANS DREAM OF AN NBA FRANCHISE AS EXPANSION

USA TODAY Sports 

A stormy Thursday evening could not stop the National Basketball Association (NBA) from taking over Mexico City as the Atlanta Hawks beat the Orlando Magic 120-119 in front of a sellout crowd, as the league promises more matches for Mexican fans.

NBA commissioner Adam Silver sees Mexico as a gateway for further expansion of the sport throughout Central and Latin America, making it an attractive potential growth market.

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