Former Philadelphia 76ers team physician Dr. Nicholas DiNubile sent a stark warning to the WNBA about the fate of superstar Caitlin Clark.
Clark is currently out with a back injury, and concerns about her physical wellbeing have surged into a national controversy over the last week after she was punched in the throat by an opposing player in her last game, and referees didn’t call a foul.
Clark has faced a history of controversial contact since coming into the league in 2024.
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DiNubile admits he is troubled by what he has seen.
“The type of contact and the amount of contact that she gets is concerning to me. It’s troubling to me,” DiNubile told Fox News Digital, addressing the risks of the recent punch against Clark’s throat by Phoenix Mercury star Alyssa Thomas.
“You can crush someone’s larynx with very little pressure. Ten to 20 pounds of pressure can damage the throat or larynx area. Even if you don’t fracture the larynx, a blow to that area, you could get some swelling or bleeding and close the airway and get into a very rapid life-or-death situation,” he said. “I wouldn’t want to be the team doctor having to deal with that. That’s what keeps us up at night, those kind of things that you have to respond to on the court… you can’t go for the throat.”
But the doctor warned of other danger from similar hits to the one Clark has previously endured in the pros.
“She gets a lot to her face. She gets poked in the eye. She gets hit in the face,” DiNubile said. “And they also, with her three-point shooting… there’s a lot of where they get in her space and her landing space. You see that way too often and that’s very, very dangerous.
“Just getting hit on the head and hit across the head, you know, head injuries, concussions, any variety of things like that. Then you fall to the floor and anything can happen when you fall to the floor. So, um, just not good and not necessary. I don’t think it’s necessary.”
Fox News Digital documented 13 instances of controversial contact on Clark dating back to the beginning of her 2024 rookie year, including multiple pokes to the eye and what she revealed to be a ruptured eardrum.
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The throat punch is just the latest in a string of controversial moments, where fans became concerned over Clark’s wellbeing and treatment by other players.
DiNubile believes Clark is completely at the mercy of the rest of the league.
“I don’t think there’s anything she can do,” he said when asked if Clark can do to avoid injuries from the hard contact.
“It’s hard to protect yourself with those type of… And that’s why they’re flagrant fouls, right? You just… There, there’s no way to really protect yourself in those instances… she takes it in stride. I don’t think she brings any of it on herself.”
DiNubile’s opinion is that the league has to do a better job of actively protecting Clark, via the referees, in order to avoid disaster.
“I think they should be calling things,” he said. “They can officiate better… I mean, how do they miss this?”
WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert put out a statement this week defending Thomas from apparent verbal retaliation for the throat punch on Clark. However, the WNBA did not put out any statement in support of Clark after she was punched in the throat.
“The safety and well-being of everyone in our community is always the league’s top priority. We are aware of Alyssa Thomas’ comments, and what she and her teammates have experienced is completely unacceptable and not representative of the WNBA community. The league and our security team have been in contact with the Phoenix Mercury organization and remain committed to protecting all players,” Engelbert said.
Clark’s own coach on the Indiana Fever, Stephenie White, also spoke in support of Thomas.
“I think as a league, as a whole, there’s been so much more toxicity, racism, homophobia, straight-out nonsense… it is absolutely unacceptable,” White told reporters at practice on Wednesday. “If you are one of these people that are online doing this, do not call yourself a WNBA fan.”
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