“There’s a lot of other s*** going on, that other [Fever] players are like ‘This ain’t where I want to be’. So you have players that are very significant on this Indiana Fever team that are like, ‘I don’t… I don’t think this is where I wanna be this year’”. Sheryl Swoopes’ remarks made during an appearance on the ‘Gil’s Arena’ show back in September 2024 certainly raised some eyebrows. It was no secret that the former WNBA player was among those who weren’t easily impressed by Caitlin Clark. However, she downright implied that there were tensions in the locker room because of her. Swoopes did not give any proof, and stated, “I’m not in the locker room. I don’t know. I’m not even on the team”. Well, two people who were there to watch the Indiana Fever’s mood recently chose to set the record straight.

Caitlin Clark recently made her highly anticipated return to the NCAA stage. However, she didn’t appear on the basketball court, but instead called in for a 20+ minute interview with WNBA legends Sue Bird and Diana Taurasi. As the conversation progressed, Clark was asked about how the narrative was running that the Indiana Fever squad did not get along with each other well, right around the same time Swoopes made her remarks. Diana Taurasi, who played her last WNBA season when Clark played her rookie season, completely denied the narrative from her side. Right in front of the 23-year-old, she admitted that “all we heard that that whole week was like ‘Indiana, they don’t get along’, you know, all this, and I’m like ‘Great’, and then I’m like ‘this is the most together team I’ve ever seen’”.

The 2024 WNBA Rookie of the Year also addressed the rumors of turmoil in the Fever locker room. Clark admitted that, eventually, one just becomes used to the narrative. At the same time, she also threw some shade at the critics by adding that “people think they know what’s going on inside of your locker room, and they just don’t, at the end of the day. It’s just, you know, the girls that you have in there, and then obviously your coaching staff, and that’s all that matters”.

Clark revealed that even though the Fever squad lost their first eight games, the mood in the locker room was still good. Furthermore, she believed that any wins that came their way wouldn’t have happened if the team didn’t have a tight-knit circle or a good locker room. For the star player, it was the reason the team “kind of turned everything around”. With time, that young group got well-adjusted with each other.

Diana Taurasi played only 2 games against the Caitlin Clark-led Indiana Fever squad. Both of these matchups were lost by the Phoenix Mercury, with the first game seeing the Fever secure a narrow win by an 88-82 score, while Caitlin Clark secured a win in the second game by a wider margin and a 98-89 score. The 3x WNBA champion herself wasn’t the biggest fan of Caitlin Clark even before the latter arrived in the league.

In fact, Taurasi went viral for once claiming that “You look superhuman playing against 18-year-olds, but you’re going to (be playing against) some grown women that have been playing professional basketball for a long time.” However, the 2 games she played against the Indiana Fever were at least enough to convince her that the team seemed to have a good rapport.

If there is one tag that Sheryl Swoopes has been given, as Athlon Sports reporter Angelo Guinhawa highlighted, it is that of “a huge Caitlin Clark hater”. As the then rookie star progressed through the WNBA season, Swoopes introduced several narratives targeting Clark, which included claiming that even with her huge scoring numbers, she was “not dominating”, and that Clark’s presence was behind Kelsey Mitchell becoming an unrestricted free agent. Swoopes even claimed that “Personally, here’s where I think [the Fever] didn’t do a very good job, and that was with Kelsey Mitchell, who’s an unrestricted free agent. Because Kelsey Mitchell had a hell of a season this season, and I don’t think that she got the credit that she deserved.”

In the end, the joke was on Swoopes, as Mitchell officially re-signed with the Fever, and agreed to a 1-year, $249,244 deal. In a statement, Mitchell even praised Clark by calling her “one of the greatest people in the world”.

Fortunately, all of these were things of the past. If one were to check on Sheryl Swoopes now, they would find that the 54-year-old is now choosing a different stance on the Fever star.

Sheryl Swoopes praised Caitlin Clark for getting ‘stronger’ amid team praise: “They have put the pieces together”

Sheryl Swoopes gave one of her most recent interviews to ESPN back in late March, 2025. During the same, she touched base on the Indiana Fever squad. According to her, the team made some big moves, “maybe the best moves”, during the recent off-season. In her eyes, those are enough to help the team potentially compete and even win a championship title.

“Can we talk about Kelsey Mitchell, who is just a walking bucket? How much stronger Caitlin got in the offseason, you know she was in the gym working on her game,” said the 4x WNBA champion. “This Indiana Fever team, they have put the pieces together in this offseason, and I’m excited to see what they’re going to do.”

Swoopes remarks certainly made some funs poke fun at her expense. According to a report by Athlon Sports, one social media user discussed the remarks by writing “Wow she didn’t say anything negative about CC. That’s dope”. One individual wrote “Oh how she is changing her tune now..” Another social media user wrote “wow gave Catlin Clark some credit….wow.” Another individual wrote “Is Swoops okay – she said something nice about CC instead of bashing with a lie”.

Maybe Swoopes was giving credit only where she felt it deserved. Therefore, if she ever chooses to criticize Caitlin Clark again, we should not get too surprised.