Over the past few weeks, every player who has found themselves in a controversial moment involving Caitlin Clark has ended up fighting two battles: One on the court and another online. When the Las Vegas Aces and the Indiana Fever locked horns on Sunday, Chelsea Gray became the latest name on that list. But after the WNBA follower behind the targeted comments was fired from their job, the Aces star had just one message for those who stood by her.
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“Appreciate all the messages, posts, emails, etc. Even if I don’t reply to all of them, know that I thank you! 😊,” she wrote on her Instagram Stories.
Initially, when Gray revealed the kind of abuse she had been dealing with following the Aces’ 109-75 loss to the Fever, many assumed her second-quarter collision with Caitlin Clark was the reason behind all the backlash. After Gray shared a screenshot of those messages, the social media community dug into the account behind the message.
They identified the person as Nick Schreiber, who was listed as an employee of Hilton Grand Vacations in Austin, Texas. That eventually prompted the company to launch an internal investigation before later confirming to Front Office Sports that the employee was no longer with the organization.
“Hilton Grand Vacations was made aware of a social media post involving an individual who identified as one of our employees. We immediately launched an investigation, and the individual is no longer employed by the company. We strongly condemn all forms of hate speech, racism and discrimination. Such behavior is completely inconsistent with our values,” a company spokesperson said in a statement.
There is very little doubt around the fact that over the past two seasons, players have been facing a lot more backlash and are becoming targets of online harassment. But Caitlin Clark, for her part, has made it clear that their is no place for that kind of behavior in the W.
“I’ve stood up here and said before, the harassment, the hate, none of that is OK,” Clark told reporters after the Alyssa Thomas incident. “That goes for the opposing team we play, that goes for my teammates, that goes for my coaches. There should never be question of character… None of that is OK, and I don’t want anybody to ever experience that.”
Whether it’s Thomas, Chelsea Gray, or anyone else, on-court moments will always spark debate. That’s a part of sports. But those conversations are often crossing the line.
Thankfully for Gray and the fans, this time the person responsible was held accountable. And judging by her message afterward, the overwhelming support she received mattered far more than the hate that started it all.