Sparks move Fever game; Indy writer suspended after Caitlin Clark interaction

The Los Angeles Sparks have moved their May 24 game against Caitlin Clark and the Indiana Fever to the 19,000-seat Crypto.com Arena, the team announced Tuesday.

The Sparks were set to host Clark's Los Angeles-area WNBA debut at the Walter Pyramid on the campus of Long Beach State, which seats about 4,000. But with the Los Angeles Lakers, Clippers and Kings out of the postseason, availability opened at the downtown Los Angeles Crypto.com Arena.

"Women's basketball is experiencing unprecedented viewership and attendance numbers, so moving these games back to Crypto.com Arena provides us the ability to have more fans in the stands and have our players back to competing on their home floor," said Christine Monjer, the Sparks' president.

Tickets to see the Fever and Clark, who was the No. 1 pick in the 2024 WNBA draft and set the NCAA Division I all-time scoring record in her recently completed senior season at Iowa, have been a hot seller.

The Sparks also announced they are moving games against the Dallas Wings (May 26) and Minnesota Lynx (June 5) to Crypto.com Arena.

In other Clark-related news, news emerged Tuesday that Gregg Doyel, a longtime columnist for the Indianapolis Star, is in the midst of a two-week suspension. The punishment was levied by the publication and its corporate owner, Gannett, after Doyel's awkward encounter with Clark at her introductory news conference last month. He also will not cover the Fever in person this season, and any columns he writes about the team will be based on what he sees on television.

That news comes from the Substack account of Bob Kravitz, a sports journalist for more than 40 years and formerly of the Star.

Doyel's work last appeared in the newspaper on April 29, and Kravitz said he is due to return to work on Monday.