Jul 20, 2024; Phoenix, AZ, USA; Team WNBA guard Caitlin Clark (22) against USA Women's National Team player Kelsey Plum (5) at Footprint Center. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

Sparks' Kelsey Plum Responds to Viral Caitlin Clark, WNBA All-Star Drama

Originally posted on Los Angeles Sparks on SI
By Ben Geffner | Last updated Aug 15, 2025 3:55 PM ET

During warmups of this year's WNBA All-Star Game, players from both respective teams — Team Collier and Team Clark — wore "Pay Us What You Owe Us" t-shirts, a representation of ongoing Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) negotiations.

Following the contest, Plum called out Team Clark — captained by Indiana Fever star guard Caitlin Clark — for skipping a players meeting earlier that Saturday in which players agreed to wear the shirts.

"It was a very powerful moment. As players, we didn't know that that was going to happen. It was a genuine surprise," Plum said. "The t-shirt ... was determined this morning that we had a meeting for.

"Not to tattletale, but zero members of Team Clark were very present for that," she added, laughing. "I'm trying to make the situation lighter ... we wanted to do something that was collective."

kelsey plum on her team clark comment at allstar:

“i made a bad joke—i should’ve known it was a way more serious moment than a typical allstar game—i was making a joke that they’re hungover even though [we were] team hangover. obviously we’re all on the same page, all unified.” pic.twitter.com/12jYZx35N2
— cc akgae (@clrkszn) August 15, 2025

Despite the overall statement made in Plum's message, the attempted joke against Team Clark caused a plethora of social media reactions.

In a recent episode of Sue Bird's "Bird's Eye View" podcast, Plum responded to questions surrounding the statement — and reaffirmed that the comment made was an attempted joke.

"I made a bad joke," Plum said. "Obviously we're all on the same page, we all wore the shirt — we're all unified.

"Hindsight is 20/20. Because of the shirts, because of the fans ... I should've known it was a way more serious moment than a typical All-Star Game," Plum added. "I went into that press conference very happy ... just making a joke, trying to make the room lighter."

This article first appeared on Los Angeles Sparks on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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