Caitlin Clark technical foul situation: Why Fever star is not at risk of missing a playoff game

Clark is one technical foul away from a one-game suspension, but the slate is wiped clean at the end of the regular season

By Jack Maloney Sep 14, 2024 at 4:18 am ET• 2 min read

Caitlin Clark and the Indiana Fever had another frustrating night on Friday, as they lost a close one to the defending champion Las Vegas Aces, 78-74. In the process, the No. 1 overall pick set the single-season assist record and received her sixth technical foul of the season, which puts her one away from a one-game suspension. 

In the middle of the first quarter, Clark, who had just missed a pair of free throws down at the other end of the floor, was called for a foul on Tiffany Hayes. She hit the basket stanchion in frustration, more with herself than the officials, as she walked off the court towards the baseline. Immediately, she was whistled for a technical foul. 

Caitlin Clark gets her 6th technical of the season, 1 more and she'll be suspended for 1 game pic.twitter.com/W7jin2W2Rt

— WNBA Rookie Watch (@WNBARookieWatch) September 13, 2024

The good news for Clark and the Fever is she is not at risk of missing a playoff game because of this situation. 

Under the league's current rules, once a player reaches seven technical fouls, they will be suspended for one game. A player would then face an additional one-game suspension for every two technicals after that. We've already seen Natasha Cloud hit the limit and miss the Phoenix Mercury's game against the Atlanta Dream on Sept. 3. 

That threshold only applies to the regular season, however. Ahead of the playoffs, the slate is wiped clean. Even if Clark, or another player, was to receive their seventh technical foul in the final game of the regular season, they would not be suspended for Game 1 of the first round of the playoffs, the league confirmed to CBS Sports on Friday.