Caitlin Clark is a major problem.

On Sunday night, the Indiana Fever superstar clinched the WNBA’s rookie assist record with her 226th assist of the season – the most dimes by a rookie in WNBA history, passing Ticha Penicheiro’s 1998 tally.

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Clark currently leads the WNBA in assistsCredit: Getty
The record came in a dominant yet feisty 92-75 win over the Seattle Storm that saw Clark continue to ruffle feathers with how unstoppable she is.

The 22-year-old received a questionable technical foul for hitting the bottom of the basket while head coaches Christie Sides and Noelle Quinn had a heated sideline altercation as time expired.

Storm star Skylar Diggins-Smith also appeared to intentionally bump into Clark near the sidelines as the biggest thing in women’s basketball motioned to fire up the home crowd and told to Seattle to ‘stop crying’.

Indiana Fever’s Caitlin Clark endures an awkward exchange with a local reporter
Clark has had an unprecedented impact on the WNBA since being drafted No. 1 earlier this year.

In terms of merchandise, the Fever have seen a 1,193% increase in jersey sales from last year and have seen more social media views than any other WNBA, NBA, NFL, NHL, or MLB team over the last four months (around 800 million views).

Her meteoric rise and soaring popularity appears to have irked a number of veterans who, at times, have seemed jealous of Clark’s sport-defining status.

Pro Football Hall of Famer and ESPN regular Shannon Sharpe has had enough of the W’s ‘foolishness’ and recently told the league’s players to stop hating on Clark’s greatness.

“I just saw A’ja [Wilson] go off. Ain’t nobody bumping into her,” Sharpe said, referencing the Diggins-Smith altercation.

“If I’m Carlin Clark I’m telling Diggins-Smith to get your coat, your hat, and get on out of our gym!”

“They’ve got to stop this foolishness. Caitlin Clark is getting the crowd going, you see Skylar Diggins speed up to make contact with her. Stop this!

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Diggins-Smith appeared to speed up to make contact with ClarkCredit: Getty

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Sharpe is tired of the WNBA’s ‘foolishness’ towards ClarkCredit: X@NightcapShow_
“Y’all mad coz she bustin’ your a**! Y’all said she too weak, she can’t do this, she leading the WNBA in assists, she cookin’!

“Let her cook! Let her cook!,” he yelled. “She’s like a double edged sword. She cuttin a** left and right.

“Ain’t no hype [with Clark],” he went on. Y’all said the same thing about Larry Bird. They said the same thing about Larry Bird.

“Ain’t no hype. Ain’t nothing hype about Luka [Doncic], ain’t nothing hype about [Nikola] Jokic.

“She’s saucy with that thing. Watching her in person, she’s elite.”

The alleged hate towards Clark has been a controversial talking point in the WNBA this year, with the likes of LeBron James and Charles Barkley claiming Clark is being targeted.

A number of games have seen Clark getting roughed up by defenders, with many pointing out the similarities with the way Michael Jordan was treated during his first years in the NBA.

Comments by WNBA legend Diana Taurasi earlier this year led fans to believe the league’s more established pros were reluctant to embrace the Caitlin Clark effect with open arms.

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Clark has taking women’s basketball to new levelsCredit: Getty
“Reality is coming, there’s levels to this thing,” the Mercury star told SportsCenter, when asked about rookies — including Clark — jumping to the pros.

“And that’s just life, we all went through it… You look superhuman playing against some 18-year-olds but you’re going to come [play] with some grown women that have been playing professional basketball for a long time”.

“Not saying it’s not gonna translate, because when you’re great at what you do, you’re just gonna get better,” she continued. “But there is gonna be a transition period, where you’re gonna have to give yourself some grace as a rookie.”

As the season has gone on, Rookie of the Year favorite Clark has gone on to prove Taurasi and others dead wrong.

For a start she’s beaten Taurasi’s Phoenix Mercury three times this season. The latest beat down came at the weekend when Clark recorded her tenth double-double of the campaign, finishing with 29 points and 10 assists in a 98-89 win.

After being snubbed from Team USA Basketball’s gold-medal winning Olympics roster, Clark has returned to the WNBA with a vengeance.

Her 13-15 Fever are currently rolling into the postseason as the W’s 7th seed, and still have 12 regular games left to improve their record.