Having a star player in your roster is not an easy task, and the Indiana Fever could see history repeat itself. During an ugly game against the Portland Rose Saturday, head coach Stephanie White brought rookie Raven Johnson to the chair, pushing point guard Caitlin Clark behind her. Lo and behold, conspiracy theories about trouble in paradise didn’t take long, with YouTuber columnist Skip Bayless making a bold claim.

Following the brutal 100-84 loss to the Portland Fire, Bayless tweeted that White is reportedly being fired by the Fever for that mid-game clash. After almost every WNBA journalist proved that there was zero truth to the claim, Bayless has returned to explain what his tweet really meant. And he might not be wrong!

“Now they’re saying reports are erroneous about Stephanie White,” Bayless wrote. “But the point is, she won’t last much longer clashing during games with CAITLIN CLARK … even if her issues with Caitlin are mostly valid.”

We won’t have to go far into the past to see why Bayless makes a valid point. In 2024, Clark was a touted rookie with many jewels attached to her crown. That, in turn, boosted the economy in Indy. But when reports came out that the then-head coach Christie Sides, might not be the best fit for a player of Clark’s stature, she was eventually fired. That move didn’t happen at once, either.

It started with fan backlash and analysts’ and YouTubers’ opinions on the connection between Sides and Clark. Lo and behold, even with the Fever making it to the playoffs for the first time in a decade, Sides was fired. And that was when she publicly sided with Clark more often than not. White, on the other hand, is in a comparatively different situation.

The root of this entire controversy stems from a timeout interaction between Clark and White during the second quarter. Both of them got into an animated exchange, while the Fever coach aggressively pointed her fingers towards Clark. In the very next moment, the Fever head coach subbed out Clark for Raven Johnson.

The moment caught on camera led to a major fiasco, fueling major tensions in the relationship between Clark and White. Their relationship has already come under the microscope a few times this season.

For instance, White had to face the fire after the Washington Mystics game when the Fever head coach didn’t praise Clark’s performance as the fans would have liked. Many even thought that the Fever’s head coach tried to avoid giving Clark her props, despite the latter’s most efficient performance of the season.

In the Portland Fire game as well, questions were raised about why Clark played just 22 minutes. And these verbal exchanges just add to the media firestorm around the two. Former head coach Cheryl Miller also echoed the same sentiment on the At The Half show.

“Right now, it’s frustration. And unfortunately, it’s boiling over, and it’s being seen,” Miller said. “It’s one thing to have it behind closed doors, but it’s another thing when it spills over, and when the coach has to basically say, ‘You know what, Caitlin, enough is enough, this is too disruptive. In and out, take a seat.’”

For now, Skip Bayless’ prediction is false.

Stephanie White has changed the look of the franchise and will continue to lead the Indiana Fever in the upcoming season. But things change fast in Indy, and everyone already knows it. Yet, some voices have already clarified what the truth is.

But WNBA journalists like Tony East, who covers the Fever for Forbes Sports, immediately pushed back on this report. “There is zero truth to this,” East wrote. Chloe Peterson from Indy Star Sports also reacted to Bayless’ comment on X.

“For those that have seen Skip Bayless’ tweet about reports of Stephanie White being let go from the Fever: I’m told there is absolutely no validity to that report,” she wrote.

White’s interaction with Clark was, of course, a bit exaggerated. And to be honest, it shouldn’t have happened in front of the camera. But while addressing Clark’s limited minutes, Stephanie White has also offered a plausible assessment.

Stephanie White Pinpoints the Minutes Restriction for Caitlin Clark’s Limited Game Time

One of Stephanie White’s most surprising decisions came in the first quarter. Just over three minutes into the game, White took out Clark, Aliyah Boston, and Lexie Hull at once. The plan backfired immediately.

The Indiana Fever gave away their 8-4 lead and went on to score just 7 points in the rest of the quarter. Particularly for Clark, the decision was even more dismal, as she had already scored 2 points and dished out 3 assists by then. Speaking in the post-game presser regarding it, White pointed her fingers toward injury caution.

“AB is still on a minute restriction, so she’s coming out. Typically, that’s around the same time we’ve been taking Caitlin Clark out as well,” White said. “We didn’t do that in Golden State because, quite honestly, we didn’t want Raven Johnson in that environment without another ball-handler on the floor. That’s been our typical substitution pattern.”

Another reason behind Caitlin Clark’s limited minutes in the game could have been her foul troubles. The Fever guard is always the center of attention for the opponents, and the Fire simply knew how to force a foul. Clark picked up five fouls in the game, but her performance was even more disappointing on the night.

Clark scored just once from the field in her 22-minute stay, and it wasn’t a three-pointer. Clark’s lingering back injury is also emerging as a kryptonite this season. As a result, it only seems fitting that White was only looking for better options on the night through substitutions rather than extending Clark on a night where nothing was going right for her.

Along similar lines, the Indiana Fever’s situation is a growing concern for Stephanie White. The Fever entered the last week with a 4-2 record. But they faced back-to-back defeats against the Golden State Valkyries and now the Portland Fire. They are now 4-4 and sitting 4th in the Eastern Conference. They host the Atlanta Dream up next on June 4 at the Gainbridge Fieldhouse. With Angel Reese’s trade there, it will be yet another fiery competition between the two players and White would want to be on the winning side.