Paige Bueckers tried to keep it simple. In an interview shared by @winchesters, she talked about teaming up with Caitlin Clark for Team USA, calling out how they’re friends and how it’s the media, and their fanbases, that keep pushing a rivalry angle. It was calm, it was friendly, and it was very “we’re good, stop being weird.”
That didn’t stop WNBA fans from doing what they do best: taking one clip and turning it into a timeline debate.
@phoenix_WM quoted the interview and boiled the whole thing down to one line: “Two fanbases that hate each other.” Then they added the tweet that set everything off: “who’s gonna tell her that 6 people who show up to wings games plus wattpad fc does not consistute a fanbase.”
“Two fanbases that hate each other”
who’s gonna tell her that 6 people who show up to wings games plus wattpad fc does not consistute a fanbase (crying emoji)— Priya (@phoenix_WM) January 22, 2026
From there, WNBA fans ran with it. Some laughed it off. Some took it personally. Some treated it like Paige had just declared a trade request.
Another layer got added when @CamDub1 reminded everyone, “Most people don’t even know this, but Paige used to attend Caitlin’s games during high school.”
That detail flipped the mood for a lot of WNBA fans. What was framed as rivalry suddenly looked more like a long-running mutual respect story that the internet keeps trying to rewrite.
This whole situation isn’t just about Paige and Caitlin. For WNBA fans, it’s about how every interaction between two popular players gets filtered into teams, sides, and fake wars. One interview clip turns into “fanbases that hate each other.” One joke turns into a referendum on who really has support. One old high school detail turns into proof that the whole thing might be overblown.
And that’s why this keeps looping. WNBA fans aren’t reacting to what was actually said. They’re reacting to the version of the league they argue about online. The real clip was two players talking about friendship and playing together. The timeline version was about who has numbers, who has noise, and who supposedly runs the culture.
Somewhere in the middle is the truth. Paige said they’re cool. Caitlin has said the same. The rest is WNBA fans building a rivalry because discourse needs fuel, even when the people involved clearly aren’t providing any.
WNBA fans split as Wings vs Fever opener sparks Paige Bueckers vs Caitlin Clark talk
The conversation didn’t stop at one interview. It got another push when @trendyhoopstars posted, “The Dallas Wings and the Indiana Fever are set to meet in their season opener.”
On paper, it’s a normal opener. On social media, WNBA fans immediately treated it like a storyline drop.
Some leaned straight into Paige Bueckers vs Caitlin Clark energy. @AKM20255 didn’t bother easing into it, tweeting, “Paige dropping 40 on them clowns head.” That post alone pulled in replies from both sides, with WNBA fans picking teams before anyone even knows what the final rosters will look like.
Others were far less impressed. @aniyaaaxoxo pushed back on the whole framing, writing, “They saw the chicago vs fever rivalry miserably backfired last season so now they tryna force this bs.” T
hat sentiment showed up a lot across WNBA fans who are tired of every big game being sold as a personal feud instead of, well, a game.
There was also confusion mixed into the hype. Some WNBA fans started asking if this opener was even tied to the new CBA timeline, throwing out years like 2027 and wondering if people were getting ahead of themselves. Even that uncertainty didn’t slow the takes. If anything, it added more room for speculation.
What stands out is that many WNBA fans seem to like this comparison more than the Caitlin Clark vs Angel Reese debates, not because of personality, but because of roles. To them, this matchup feels cleaner. Two highly skilled guards. Two long-running names. Less chaos, more basketball, even if the arguments still get loud.
In the end, this opener has become less about a schedule release and more about identity. WNBA fans are already rooting for their picks, protecting their favorites, and arguing over which support system is real and which one is noise. The game might be months away, but the fan split is already in midseason form.
