INDIANAPOLIS — Atlanta Dream vice president and part owner Renee Montgomery, a WNBA All-Star and two-time champion, came down hard on a faction of the fanbase of Indiana Fever rookie Caitlin Clark, saying they are being "racist, sexist and violent with their words."

Montgomery launched into a diatribe earlier this week on her podcast, Montgomery & Company, calling a portion of Clark's fanbase "stans" who "have taken on a life of their own. "Stan" is a term coined by rapper Eminen in his 2000 release by the same name which refers to overzealous and obsessive fans who sometimes cross the line in disturbing ways.

"Besides the bots, I don't even think some of (Clark's) faux fans actually even watch her games," Montgomery said. "And it doesn't even seem like it's about Caitlin anymore, the stans. Like, it doesn't even seem like they care what goes on in the basketball aspect. They're just there on social media, ready to fight, OK?"

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She went on to say she is not singling out all Clark fans. "Y'all are straight, like (I) love it, support your player. I'm speaking on a particular group that is motivated by hate and destruction," she said, "and, if that's not you, then this is not about you."

Not liking, taunting or even hating an opposing team or player is what Montgomery loves about sports, she said. "So please don't confuse me saying motivated by hate by meaning hating on a team the way a normal die-hard fan would."

Montgomery gave two specific examples:

"A die-hard Falcons fan can hate the Saints, but they would be going a little bit too far if they created nude AI pictures of Saints players and then sent them to the Saints' players' families. That's what Caitlin stans have done to Angel Reese."

"A die-hard Tennessee Vols fan could have hated our UConn Huskies (where Montgomery played college and won an NCAA title), but they would have been going way too far if they sent death threats to the UConn players. That's what Caitlin stans have done."

Montgomery urged people to imagine if the things Clark "stans" are saying were being said to their daughters, wives, cousins or sisters.

"Folks might be ready to fight. It's not OK. It's OK to be a hater in sports. Like, hating in sports is a part of the game," she said. "But being racist, sexist and violent with your words. Come on now, what are we doing? Come on now. That's not acceptable.

"Some of y'all, y'all are taking it too far, man. Do better."

Follow IndyStar sports reporter Dana Benbow on X: @DanaBenbow. Reach her via email: dbenbow@indystar.com. 

This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Caitlin Clark fans 'being racist, sexist,' says WNBA team owner