Caitlin Clark returns to the court after she was brutally BODYCHECKED by Chennedy Carter as her Indiana Fever teammates are slammed

Caitlin Clark was back on the court on Sunday night as the fallout from Chennedy Carter's brutal bodycheck rolled on.

Clark was knocked to the ground by Chicago Sky's Carter towards the end of the third quarter of Indiana Fever's WNBA game on Saturday.

Television replays appeared to show Carter yelling 'you b***h' at Clark before shoving her to the ground. 

Clark ended up having the last laugh - her team holding on for a one-point win and the 71-70 triumph was the team's first home win of the season. 

She was back in action on Sunday as the Fever took on the New York Liberty, with Clark in good spirits as she warmed up at Barclays Center.

But her Fever teammates have come in for criticism for not doing more to 'protect' the WNBA's star player.

The Warriors' Draymond Green wrote in the comments section of an ESPNW post on Instagram, 'Indiana better go invest in an enforcer… FAST!'

Former NBA forward Matt Barnes also weighed in on the Fever's need to protect Clark. 

'I mean, throughout the season, she's been getting beat up,' he began in an Instagram post, as noted by the New York Post. 'Hard screens, elbows, knocked down,' Barnes said. 'It is what it is; she's not the first, she won't be the last. My issue and my question is, Where the f**k are her teammates at? Where y'all at? Where are the rest of the Indiana Fever at?

Barnes, who played with the likes of Kobe Bryant, Blake Griffin and Chris Paul throughout his career, was at times an enforcer himself and believes Clark's teammates need to stick up for her more.  

'I've seen a couple of girls smirk when she's got knocked down, half-ass to pick her up. Like, y'all supposed to protect the asset, protect the star. And although this is a team, you always protect your star. I was someone who protected the stars. You f**k with Kobe, [Chris Paul], Blake [Griffin], the list goes on, it's going to be a problem.'

While Carter refused to answer questions about Clark after the Sky's loss on Saturday, she had plenty to say on social media afterwards

Writing about Clark on Threads, Carter said, '...beside three point shooting what does [Clark] bring to the table man.'

She also alluded to her beef with Clark on her own Instagram story, writing, 'I grew up with all brothers. All we did is fight and argue. I love the hate more than the love what don't yall understand. I'd rather you hate me [than] love me and I mean that on my dead aunt.' 

Clark's Fever went into halftime vs. the Liberty down 55-37, with Clark scoring just three points in the period.