Caitlin Clark’s historic rookie season is just the beginning

“It’s a good little taste of what’s possible for this organization and for this franchise.”

That was 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 been summing 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 a 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 off 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 unquestionably 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 Playoffs. At 22y, 247d, she’s the youngest player to record such a game, previously: Cappie Pondexter (24y, 235d)#WNBAPlayoffs presented by @google pic.twitter.com/BOuz1AGVHT

— WNBA (@WNBA) September 26, 2024

Attendance, viewership records set

Clark’s impact was even larger 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 had done in college as well. This season, 186,000 fans attended Fever home games, up 265% from the year before — and on the road teams moved games to larger arenas to…

Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/caitlin-clarks-historic-rookie-season-113623037.html

Author : NBC Sports

Publish date : 2024-09-26 11:36:23

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