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Kelsey Plum inadvertently takes swipe at former teammates

Originally posted on Dice City Sports | By Derek Hegna | Last updated Jul 21, 2025 10:34 AM ET

During the WNBA All-Star Game on Saturday, the players made their feelings crystal clear about the state of their negotiations with the league on a new CBA.

When the players took the court for warmups, players wore shirts with the slogan “Pay us what you owe us” on the front. The move drew mixed reactions, which has become expected anytime increased pay for WNBA players has been mentioned, but the message to the league was clear. Pressure has now been ramped up on both sides to get a deal done in order to prevent a potential lockout in October, which would almost certainly stifle the upwards momentum the WNBA is starting to carry.

After Team Napheesa Collier defeated Team Caitlin Clark, former Las Vegas Aces guard and current Los Angeles Spark Kelsey Plum let loose a bit of frustration.

Plum’s former teammates were caught in the crossfire of her comments.

When Plum held her postgame presser with New York Liberty forward Sabrina Ionescu, she singled out Team Clark for supposedly not participating in what was a planned demonstration.

“Not to tattletale but, zero members of Team Clark were very present for that,” Plum said.

KP: “It was a very powerful moment. As players, we didn’t know that that was going to happen. It was a genuine surprise. The t shirt was determined this morning. Not to tattletale: 0 members of Team Clark were very present for that” https://t.co/2fXgaAuqMR pic.twitter.com/awIfnqLjxv

— Oh No He Didn’t (@ohnohedidnt24) July 20, 2025

Plum did not name names and likely was trying to avoid being too hostile, but it is interesting to note that both Aces center A’ja Wilson and forward Jackie Young were on the aforementioned Team Clark.

It is unsurprising that Plum wants the players on the same page, in no small part due to her role as first vice president of the player’s association. That said, the comments came across as ill-timed and generally uncalled for. In a situation where the players should be striving for unity to push for a better deal, Plum’s shot across the bow runs the risk of having the opposite effect.

There is likely not going to be any bad blood between Plum and her former teammates, but she might find it wise to cool her jets until after a new CBA gets across the finish line.

This article first appeared on Dice City Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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