Fans Concoct Caitlin Clark Leaving Fever for Mercury WNBA Conspiracy

Robin Lundberg | Jul 23, 2024

Joe Camporeale-USA TODAY Sports

This is really too silly to even address seriously, but nonetheless here we are. After cameras caught Phoenix Mercury guard Sophie Cunningham talking to Indiana Fever rookie Caitlin Clark at the WNBA All-Star Game, fans began speculating that Cunningham was making a recruiting pitch.

Oh they are recruiting her HARD pic.twitter.com/V28lN8HJWK

— sofia (@slowlyslide) July 21, 2024

Mind you, even if Clark was asked if she wanted to come to Phoenix as some suspect, there are numerous reasons why the premise is fairly ridiculous. The first being Caitlin's existing contract. Under the current terms of her deal with the Fever, Clark cannot become a restricted free agent until 2028.

But that fact hasn't been enough to stop the speculation. Which is due to the theory that since the WNBA is likely to garner a huge media rights boost the collective bargaining agreement will become moot and thus existing deals would become obsolete. While it is certainly highly probable things will indeed go way up in that regard, with players likely to opt out of the current CBA ahead of the 2026 season, the ramifications of such a thing are unknown and at this point completely made up.

Yes. There are rumors the next CBA by the W is meant to rip up many players contracts. So Caitlin in 2026 is very likely a free agent. https://t.co/g0JXKKiHqG

— Mily (@DayDreamThis) July 23, 2024

Then there is the situation as it pertains to Caitlin specifically. It's not as if she is in a really rough spot in Indiana. Clark is flanked by two legitimate All-Stars in Aliyah Boston and Kelsey Mitchell. The Fever are currently in playoff positioning after having the number one pick in the draft and a foundation of said trio seems like a pretty good position to build from.

The other thing I would say

CC already has a history of choosing to stay with a previously non-championship caliber program and elevating it, even at the expense of a championship

I think she'd see a lot of value in sticking with Indy and elevating it instead of ring chasing

— CC Report (@cc22report) July 23, 2024

This is all likely a result of fans being bored, since Caitlin is actually getting a break after earning her professional respect. So just like what she finally got, it's time to give it a rest.