DiJonai Carrington claps back at Christine Brennan with WNBPA statement on her latest IG story

Following DiJonai Carrington and the Connecticut Sun's first-round sweep of Caitlin Clark and the Indiana Fever, the reigning WNBA Most Improved Player has fired back at longtime USA Today reporter Christine Brennan for her questions during a scrum prior to Game 2 against the Fever.

After asking whether Carrington meant to hit Caitlin Clark in the face while trying to deflect a pass in Game 1, Brennan then asked if Carrington and Marina Mabrey had a laugh over the incident afterward. Given that the Sun star had just told Brennan that she didn't realize she hit Clark, the question wasn't well received.

On Friday, the WNBPA put out a statement calling out Brennan that read, in part:

"To unprofessional members of the media like Christine Brennan: You are not fooling anyone. That so-called interview in the name of journalism was a blatant attempt to bait a professional athlete into participating in a narrative that is false and designed to fuel racist, homophobic, and misogynistic vitriol on social media.

"You cannot hide behind your tenure."

DiJonai Carrington then posted a screenshot on her Instagram story, tagging Brennan and calling her "goofy."

DiJonai Carrington (@dijonai__) - Instagram story

Caitlin Clark defends DiJonai Carrington after Game 1 incident that sparked backlash

Following the Game 1 incident between Caitlin Clark and DiJonai Carrington, which saw the Indiana Fever star accidentally get hit in the face, Carrington was on the receiving end of backlash.

Given that the two had a run-in back in June, where Carrington was seen mocking Clark for flopping during a play, some members of the WNBA community questioned whether the hit was intentional.

Following the game, Caitlin Clark spoke with media members, where she was seen sporting a black eye. Despite that, the Fever star made it clear that the blow didn’t impact her vision.

Then, before Game 2, Clark was asked about the situation. Specifically, she was asked what she would say to someone who thought that DiJonai Carrington intentionally hit her in the eye. Clark laughed off the question, making it clear

“It wasn’t intentional by any means. You can just watch the play. It wasn’t intentional.”

Despite Clark standing behind Carrington, making it clear that she didn’t feel the blow was intentional, DiJonai Carrington wound up receiving a disturbing email leading up to Game 2. In it, the sender called her several expletives before then wishing death upon the Sun star.

Following Game 2, Caitlin Clark spoke out about the racism being spewed by fans, making it clear that anyone who expresses racist, hurtful, or disrespectful views towards players isn’t a fan, they’re trolls.

As she went on to explain, she grew up watching the WNBA and wanting to be like the players in the W. Because of that, she feels as though the best thing fans can do is uplift the league and support its players in a positive way