The Phoenix Mercury removed a post celebrating its 111-109 win over the Indiana Fever after backlash over a doodle that referenced DeWanna Bonner’s and-one—coming amid heightened attention following a viral altercation that led to Alyssa Thomas’s one-game susp
The Phoenix Mercury’s sixth win of the season came with a sour aftertaste: after beating the Indiana Fever 111-109 in Indianapolis on Wednesday, June 24, the team celebrated on social media—and then pulled the post.
The controversy centered on a victory doodle included in an ongoing series that marks each win. The Mercury shared an image of a stick figure lying on the ground. paired with the words. “De-Wanna piece of this?!?” The stick figure was drawn in DeWanna Bonner’s look—wearing her No. 24 Mercury jersey. ponytail. and signature white headband—and it referenced Bonner’s and-one chance in the second quarter of the win.
The post didn’t stay up long. It drew backlash, with some fans and observers calling it inappropriate in the shadow of a viral clip from the same matchup. In that video, Mercury forward Alyssa Thomas pushed down on the neck of Fever guard Caitlin Clark.
A person with knowledge of the situation said the Mercury removed the post to avoid further misinterpretation.
That deletion landed in a moment when the game itself had already been heavily scrutinized. The Mercury’s doodle series dates back to last season and highlights a key player or moment from each victory. After Phoenix’s win over the Seattle Storm on June 20. the team posted a doodle depicting Mercury forward Valeriane Ayayi. who hails from France. with the caption “Oui Oui!. No Storm.”.
On June 24, the Mercury’s doodle pointed back to Bonner’s standout sequence in the second quarter. With 4:49 remaining in the first half, Bonner made a layup to bring Phoenix within one point of the Fever, 44-43. She was fouled by Indiana’s Monique Billings and responded with a triumphant roar while lying on her back. Bonner then converted the three-point play at the free-throw line to tie the game as boos rained down.
Bonner finished with 13 points and eight rebounds. The Mercury and Fever were meeting for the second time in three days.
Indiana countered with a season-high 24 points and eight assists from Thomas, and Kahleah Copper added 28 points. Still, those on-court numbers were quickly overshadowed by the earlier incident involving Thomas and Clark.
The league’s punishment came the following day. While the play involving Thomas and Clark didn’t result in a foul during the game. Fever head coach Stephanie White called it “egregious.” The league then handed Thomas a Flagrant Foul 2. resulting in a one-game suspension and a $1. 000 fine for “recklessly making contact with her fist to the throat area of Caitlin Clark.”.
Clark exited the game early in the third quarter with a back injury after landing on Phoenix’s Valeriane Ayayi on a three-point attempt. White described that moment as one of “two cheap shots.”
After the suspension was announced, the Fever released a statement from team president Kelly Krauskopf. “Player safety should be paramount in our league. We appreciate the WNBA’s review of last night’s incident and the action taken,” Krauskopf said. “Right now our focus is on Caitlin and our entire team as we prepare for Saturday.”.
The Mercury declined to comment on the deleted post, and the WNBA also declined to comment.
What’s striking is how quickly ordinary celebration collided with a broader, already-familiar conflict in this series. This wasn’t the first time a social media moment from the Fever-Mercury games sparked controversy.
After the Fever’s 86-77 win over the Mercury on Monday. a game that included six technical fouls and one ejection. Indiana promoted WNBA All-Star voting using an image of Sophie Cunningham pointing at Bonner during a fourth-quarter dust-up. The Fever captioned the shot: “Who should vote the squad to WNBA All-Star?”.
That game was tense well before the post went up. With Indiana leading 73-54 and 7:57 remaining, Clark and Bonner became tangled in the paint while jockeying for position. Clark was called for a personal foul—her fourth of the night—but the altercation spread. Clark and Bonner exchanged words after the play. Bonner attempted to walk away, but Clark briefly followed before being intercepted by a referee.
As officials tried to deescalate, Mercury forward Alyssa Thomas and Fever forward Myisha Hines-Allen confronted each other and were separated.
Then another confrontation broke out between Cunningham and Bonner. Cunningham pointed her finger at Bonner, and Bonner pointed back. Officials and team personnel again had to separate the players.
In the end, officials assessed offsetting technical fouls to Cunningham and Bonner, and also to Hines-Allen and Alyssa Thomas. Clark was also called for her fifth technical foul of the season.
In the wake of that history—and after a viral clip and league discipline in the latest meeting—the Mercury’s deleted doodle became another reminder that in this rivalry, even a celebratory caption can become part of the fight.
Phoenix Mercury Indiana Fever Alyssa Thomas Caitlin Clark DeWanna Bonner Flagrant Foul 2 WNBA social media victory doodle Stephanie White Kelly Krauskopf