Fever's Aliyah Boston Sounds Off on Caitlin Clark-Raven Johnson Drama

When the Indiana Fever selected South Carolina's Raven Johnson with the 10th overall pick in the 2026 WNBA draft, some were thrilled the team landed the best player available, while others were concerned about the history between her and face of the franchise Caitlin Clark.

Back in 2023, Clark led Iowa past Johnson and South Carolina in the NCAA Tournament. In that game, Clark taunted Johnson by waving her off and daring her to take a long-range shot in a clip that went instantly viral.

The aftermath was tough on Johnson, who admitted during an appearance on the "I Am Next" podcast years ago that the online hatred that came her way made her think about stepping away from the sport.

"I got bashed," she said. "I got bullied… I wanted to quit basketball at that time."

Now that Clark and Johnson will be teammates, some worry things will be awkward when the two are finally around each other because of their past. However, Fever star Aliyah Boston doesn't believe there will be much of an issue.

"It’s so funny because the fans always have more beef than the players actually do," Boston said on her "Post Moves" podcast. "You read all this stuff and fans are hating on one person, hating on another, and you’re playing with that said person. I think it’s going to be fine."

If anyone can relate to Johnson, it's Boston. She too was on that South Carolina team that lost to Clark in 2023, and she said it wasn't a big deal when Clark joined her Fever team as the No. 1 overall pick in 2024.

"When Caitlin Clark came after that year they beat us, we had to talk about it," Boston said. "It was one of those things like, ‘Wow, you dropped 40 on our heads,' but you move past it."

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This story was originally published April 16, 2026 at 10:23 PM.