Caitlin Clark

This young lady is just awesome!! Breaks the NCAA college record for most points ever this year. Plays an exciting style of basketball with incredible long range shooting ability. (think Steph Curry of the NBA). Not only is she a great scorer but an incredible passer also. Led her Iowa team to back to back NCAA finals, unfortunately for her and her team they did not win.  Goes into the WNBA and is having a excellent rookie season after a bit of a tough start. The Olympic break did wonders for her, last night she scored 29 points and had 10 assists and 5 rebounds. Her team which was the worst team last year (why they got #1 pick) is in the running for making the playoffs.

As much as I admire her basketball ability, I have also admired how she has handled herself off the court. Her college teammates and coach just loved her and she has impressed others in the sports world with how she has handled fame. She was at Yankee Stadium last week and met the entire team. Everyone from Aaron Judge to Anthony Rizzo raved that she was so nice and down to earth. She also has been a PR dream for her team the Indiana Fever, signing autographs and attending tons of team functions.

Finally, she has been huge economic boost. Her team has sold out every home game this year and merchandising sales are way up. Not bad for somebody making 78K for playing for the Indiana Fever. That being said, she is making a lot more money from endorsements so she will be just fine. 

Updated On: 8/17/24 at 11:32 AM

"I'm stiff."

No idea what this comment means but I will assume it is supposed to be some type of insult.

Moving on. Regular WNBA season is over, and Clark had fantastic rookie year. Led the league in assists, scored over 19 points a game and helped lead her team to post season. Along the way, she became the first WNBA player to record a "triple double" which means she had double figures in points, assists and rebounds in one game. She led the league with most 3-point FG made this year. She has also been a huge factor in the increased TV ratings of WNBA games and selling out arenas when her team plays on the road. The interest in seeing her play is a great thing for women's sports. 

"The WNBA and women's college basketball was seeing a boom prior to COVID. COVID really derailed the league's momentum heading into 2020. Since 2022, it's been gradually picking up the momentum again. Clark and Angel Reese have sped up this momentum significantly."

The Washington Mystics last home game was against Clark's team (Indiana Fever) and is usually played in place that sits around 5,000 fans. Due to ticket demand, the game was moved to arena that could hold 20,000 fans and the game was a sellout. That is the Caitlin Clark effect and that was not happening for the WNBA even before COVID. Angel Reese is a great rebounder (think Dennis Rodman) and has fans but her effect in TV ratings and in attendance is minor compared to Clark. No matter the reason, the increased interest in women's basketball is nice to see.

The Washington Mystics and Atlanta Dream need to move out of their minor league sized arenas. The Fever played at Connecticut yesterday for the start of the playoffs and there were probably more Fever and Clark fans there than Sun fans.