There’s a case to be made that Caitlin Clark has faced some of the most aggressive plays and fouls of any player since entering the WNBA in 2024. After the latest incident involving Alyssa Thomas’ fist-to-throat contact in the Mercury-Fever game on June 24, Fox News added it to a list of 13 hard contacts that Clark has faced in just her career WNBA 70 games. Now a former NBA orthopedic consultant has voiced his concern about the growing number of hits.

Former Philadelphia 76ers orthopedic consultant Dr. Nicholas DiNubile explained how Clark could pick up a career-altering injury if these hard-contact fouls don’t stop.

“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. “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,” said DiNubile.

“I wouldn’t want to be the team doctor having to deal with that. That’s what keeps us up at night. Those kinds of things that you have to respond to on the court. You can’t go for the throat,” he added.

Apart from the notable eye pokes from DiJonai Carrington in 2024, Jacy Sheldon last year and Thomas’ pushdown on June 24, Dr. DiNubile also pointed to the second foul that happened in that same second quarter. It was Mercury forward Valériane Ayayi’s reckless landing-space violation.

While attempting a three-point shot, Ayayi closed out aggressively and did not allow Clark a safe place to land, causing her to come down awkwardly. That perhaps contributed to the back injury that eventually caused her to exit the game in the third quarter.

The former NBA orthopedic consultant isn’t the only one who has noticed a pattern. The 24-year-old’s teammate Sophie Cunningham has called out the league and officials for failing to protect the face of the WNBA.

“You see the videos of literally kneeing and cheap-shotting [Clark] in the throat,” Cunningham said in the latest episode of her Show Me Something podcast. “If [Thomas] did that to any of our teammates, we’d be pissed. But they are definitely targeting [Clark], and the league and the refs do nothing to protect her,” she added.

Right now, Caitlin Clark is still out with a back injury. She missed the Fever’s subsequent game against the LA Sparks, and Fever head coach Stephanie White has encouraging news regarding her return timeline.

No Return Date Set for Caitlin Clark as Stephanie White Addresses Fever Star’s Back Injury

There is still no set date for Caitlin Clark’s return from injury yet. She is already going to miss the Aces game, but there is also still no guarantee that she will be back for the game after that against the Sparks again.

According to coach Stephanie White, Clark’s back injury is still something the team has to continue monitoring day by day.

“I think every day is a little bit better,” White said in a training ground interview on Wednesday. “I reiterate for those who haven’t had back issues, every day can be something different. You can feel really good in practices or workouts or warm-ups or whatever, and then you go to bed at night, and you wake up, and it’s different… the back is a nagging thing that manifests itself in different ways.”

She, however, revealed that Caitlin Clark has been getting some work in with the development coaches, medical staff, and sports performance staff. That is all part of her gradually working her way back to full team activities.

Hopefully, the injury will not end up like last season’s groin injury that Clark sustained in July. That injury put her out for the rest of the 2025 WNBA season, and her absence hurt the Fever in the playoffs.

The issue now is that if this continues unchecked, it’s no longer just about whether it affects her rhythm or scoring. These hard contacts could become a much bigger question about player safety and long-term health.