"There’s definitely some tension there": Fever fans fume at $214,466 Indiana star for refusing to feed Caitlin Clark

Caitlin Clark and the Indiana Fever cruised to a 99-82 victory over the Atlanta Dream on Friday. However, the win was overshadowed by growing frustration from fans toward veteran forward Natasha Howard. Howard, who is on a one-year, $214,466 contract, faced backlash after appearing to repeatedly ignore Clark on the court, refusing to pass the ball to her point guard.

Two key moments sparked the outrage. Just before halftime, Clark was visibly frustrated after not receiving an inbound pass. Later, in the final seconds of the third quarter, Howard advanced the ball herself, ignoring Clark, who had her hand raised and was calling for the ball, ultimately dribbling out precious time.

Fever fans were livid and took to social media to express their anger at Howard.

"There’s definitely some tension there lol," a fan commented.

Difficult shooting night for Natasha Howard and Caitlin Clark

Both Natasha Howard and Caitlin Clark struggled with efficiency despite the team’s commanding 99-82 victory. Howard couldn’t find her rhythm from beyond the arc, while Clark’s shooting slump from deep worsened.

Howard finished with nine points on 4-of-10 shooting, missing both of her 3-point attempts but converting her lone free throw. She added seven rebounds, two steals and posted a plus-5 rating in 24 minutes.

Clark had an even tougher night offensively. The Fever point guard shot 5-of-17, including a dismal 1-for-7 from 3-point range, and 1-for-2 from the free-throw line. Despite her shooting woes, Clark contributed nine assists, four rebounds and limited her turnovers to just two in 26 minutes on the court.

Edited by Atishay Jain