Indiana Fever star Caitlin Clark denounced all forms of hatred Friday in the wake of Phoenix Mercury forward Alyssa Thomas revealing that she’s received hateful online attacks, including death threats, following an on-court incident with Clark.Clark also announced that she will miss her second straight game, including her third this season, due to a back injury.“As I’ve stood here and said before, the harassment, the hate, none of that is OK,” Clark told reporters Friday in a roughly five-minute opening statement at practice. “That goes for (the) opposing team we play. That goes for my teammates. That goes for my coaches. There should never be a question of character. I’ve always stood up and said that and that’s truly what I believe. That’s how I was raised.”Thomas was assessed a flagrant foul 2 penalty, fined $1,000 and suspended one game last week for pushing her right fist into Clark’s throat when they got tangled up on the court during the Mercury’s 111-109 road win on June 24. In the aftermath of the incident, which was initially a no-call by the officials but was later reviewed and upgraded to a flagrant foul by the league, Thomas said she’s received a wave of targeted online attacks, some of which are “threatening our lives.”“It’s not even about the suspension. If that’s what they felt was necessary in that moment, then so be it,” Thomas told reporters Tuesday. “… The biggest thing is it’s just about our safety. We’re so concerned with the safety on the court, but time and time again we’re having people threatening our lives, leaking addresses out there, putting crazy pictures (online) that have nothing to do with basketball.”Clark said Friday that she agreed with the WNBA in its decision to assess Thomas a flagrant foul 2 penalty and added that, “I don’t really think it was up for debate.” She also said the league’s officials need to improve so that players are better protected on the court.Clark continued to push back on the hateful backlash Thomas has endured since their incident.“I don’t want anyone to ever experience that.”Clark’s comments came two days after Fever coach Stephanie White denounced “unacceptable” online behavior from fans, who she said really aren’t WNBA or Fever fans and are “using our players to further divisive agendas.”Friday was not the first time Clark has denounced racism and hatred, particularly aimed at WNBA players. She has spoken up multiple times, including at least twice during her rookie season.“I think everybody in our world deserves the same amount of respect. The women in our league deserve the same amount of respect,” Clark said before a game in June 2024. “People should not be using my name to push those agendas. It’s disappointing. It’s not acceptable.” Clark shared the same stance at the end of her rookie season after the Fever lost to the Connecticut Sun in the first round. Thomas, then a member of the Sun, called out Fever fans for their “racial comments” on social media.Clark, who has been a frequent topic of debate among fans and media, said that she’s “not a robot” and negative comments she sees directed toward WNBA players, whether that’s her team or her opponents, affect her. She said it’s “all of our jobs to help refocus the narratives.”“You guys are here in this arena every time we play,” Clark said to reporters. “The amount of people that are passionate and love the game and respect the other team, and the young boys and the girls that show up, we can’t lose sight of that. … There’s a lot of really great people that love this league and love our organization.”Clark said she was excited to return to practice Friday, but she will not play on Sunday at the Las Vegas Aces as she continues to manage her season-long back issues. The plan, she said, is for her to rejoin the lineup during the Fever’s back-to-back at the Los Angeles Sparks on Wednesday and at Phoenix on Thursday. Whether Clark plays in those games has not been decided yet.Clark has not played since June 24 against the Mercury, when she exited in the third quarter after tweaking her back.Despite her lingering back issues, Clark was recently named a WNBA All-Star Game starter for the third straight year. On Friday, she was also named the WNBA Eastern Conference Player of the Month for June. (Clark placed second among fan votes and third by media, but she was ranked 11th by player votes for All-Star starters.)“(I’m) feeling really positive about getting back into one of the games at the back-to-back,” Clark said. “Obviously, (it’s) difficult coming back in a back-to-back, so we’ll have to be cautious of that. But I feel a lot better and, like I said, (I’m) excited to get back into practice. This week has been very helpful for my overall health.”