“It’s a good taste of what’s possible for this organization and for this franchise.”
That’s how Caitlin Clark summed up her rookie season with the Indiana Fever, a team that won five games two years ago and this season was in the playoffs and nearly pushed Connecticut to a Game 3 in the first round.
She could just as easily have summed up the impact of her rookie season on the WNBA. And what lies ahead.
Clark’s first WNBA season was a revelation on the court, with records and unprecedented accomplishments at every turn:
• Clark averaged 19.2 points per game, seventh in the league.
• She led the WNBA in assists at 8.4 a game.
• She set a WNBA record with 19 assists in a game.
• She was the first WNBA rookie to record a triple-double.
• She received more than 700,000 All-Star fan votes, the most of any WNBA player ever.
• Clark finished fourth in MVP voting.
Beyond that, she showed incredible shooting range (which is why the Fever borrowed some Stephen Curry sets from the Warriors to get her open), was arguably the best passer in the league and will undoubtedly win Rookie of the Year. She also sparked a turnaround with the Fever after they started 1-8 that led them to the playoffs for the first time in eight years.
She seemed to set some kind of record every time she stepped on the court, including her final game.
What a season for the rook
Caitlin Clark becomes the only rookie to record a 25+ PTS, 5+ REB, and 5+ AST game in the WNBA Finals. At 22y, 247d, she is the youngest player to record such a game, previously: Cappie Pondexter (24y, 235d)#WNBAPlayoffs presented by @google pic.twitter.com/BOuz1AGVHT
— WNBA (@WNBA) 26 September 2024
Attendance, viewership records set
Clark’s impact was even greater off the court.
Clark – along with an impressive and popular rookie class that includes Angel Reese – sparked a breakthrough year for the league with record attendance and television ratings, things Clark and her peers did in college as well. This season, 186,000 fans attended Fever home games, up 265% from the year before — and along the way teams moved games to bigger arenas to take advantage of (and make more money from) the bigger crowds that came to see her.
Perhaps the most telling sign of Clark’s impact on the league came in her first playoff game, a Sunday afternoon matinee on ABC going head-to-head against the NFL. That game drew 1.8 million viewers – more than the other three WNBA playoff games that day combined (just under 1.3 million). Those 1.8 million are the most people to watch a WNBA game since the 2000 Finals.
Many of those fans watched the game wearing Clark jerseys — the Fever said it saw a 1,193% increase in uniform sales year over year.
Clark’s rookie season gave off Jordan vibes (or maybe Magic/Bird): Unrivaled new popularity brought by college sparking major growth that will change for the league. Clark set records on the court – most points scored by a rookie with 769, for example – and more importantly for the league put it in a much brighter spotlight, with lots of new revenue flowing in because of her.
What Jordan (and Magic/Bird) did was have an era of greatness and growing popularity that defined a decade in the NBA, forever changing the league in the process. They also won multiple championships.
Clark has the potential to do all that, too.
“I’m a hard grader. I feel like I had a solid year,” Clark said. “For me, the fun part is like I feel like I’m just scratching the surface and I’m the one who doesn’t choose every single thing that I do anymore. I know that I want to help this franchise… I know, that there’s a lot of room for me to keep getting better, so that’s what excites me the most is that I keep getting a lot better.”
Challenges of rapid growth
That brighter spotlight that came with Clark and her fan also brought some negative consequences – many WNBA players spoke about the rapid increase in racist and misogynistic comments they had to deal with, especially on social media, and especially from Clark’s segment and Fever “. fans.” Connecticut star Alyssa Thomas discussed it after her Sun removed the Fever, as did Connecticut coach Stephanie White.
“Basketball is going in a great direction, but we don’t want fans who will degrade us and call us racial things,” Thomas said.
All of which forced the WNBA to issue a statement after the game.
Clark previously denounced as “disappointing” and “unacceptable” the use of her name to push agendas of racism and misogyny. This is also bigger than just the WNBA, it is connected to the tension and divisions across America right now. However, the WNBA has been a league that prides itself on inclusion, diversity, championing progressive causes and support for everyone including the marginalized, and many of its longtime players and fans are unwilling to give that up to chase the almighty. a dollar
Thomas is right, the WNBA is headed in a great direction.
All those fans and increased ratings brought by Clark and this rookie class should drive up player salaries. Finally That season, Clark earned $76,535, in base salary as part of her four-year contract worth $338,056. (Commissioner Cathy Engelbert said Clark’s WNBA compensation, with sponsorship bonuses and the like, will be closer to $500,000, and that doesn’t include Clark’s personal sponsorship deals with Nike, Gatorade and other national brands.)
Plus, unlike the NBA, Clark and her WNBA teammates get no money from all those skyrocketing jersey sales with their names on them.
All of that will change over time – women should and will get closer to the 50/50 split of NBA player revenue with the league. You can be sure that comes from the players’ union in future negotiations as league revenues increase.
Clark, for her part, always wanted to focus on the basketball — and so do her fans.
“It was special,” Clark said of her rookie season. “A lot of things that this group accomplished, people didn’t think were possible after the start we had to the season.”
It’s also just the beginning of a legendary career that will change the league.
