Caitlin Clark Proved Undeniable In WNBA Rookie Season With Fever
Caitlin Clark just completed perhaps the craziest year we've ever seen in basketball. One that will certainly go down in history.
It was just last November that saw the Iowa Hawkeyes set an attendance record for an NCAA women's basketball game with over 55,000 fans in the stands.
Of course in the midst of her final college campaign, Clark also became the NCAA's all-time leading scorer, and led Iowa back to the national championship game. The latter was in April.
She was drafted to the WNBA with the number one overall pick by the Indiana Fever just a couple weeks later, complete with unprecedented expectations, and attention the league had never seen. Not to mention a much discussed Nike shoe deal.
Since then so many stories ensued and Clark was forced to prove she belonged in the pros under intense scrutiny, starting her rookie season just over a month after finishing her career at Iowa.
Indiana played 11 games in 20 days and began the season just 1-8. Caitlin was met with intense defense and some notable physical contact.
She also struggled with turnovers and her shot before finding her groove and showing she would answer all the hype bestowed upon her.
Clark finished the season scoring or assisting on more points than any player ever had before in the history of the WNBA. While setting a seemingly endless list of records. In addition to leading an Indiana team that had been residing at the bottom of the standings back to the playoffs.
All of this came under tons of pressure and in the midst of saga after saga, as her popularity exploded the level of coverage around the league and saw many try to capitalize by spinning narratives around her name.
During the 2024 season the talking points were essentially endless.
From her initial dose of WNBA reality, to flagrant fouls, to the Olympics snub discussion, to the All-Star Game, to Rookie of the Year and MVP debates, to comments from Sheryl Swoopes, to the behavior of fans.
Through it all she conducted herself with class. Always praising her peers, the players that came before, and rising to the occasion despite expectations that should have been unrealistic.
Caitlin will finally get some time off from basketball after the Fever were eliminated from the playoffs by the Connecticut Sun, which could offer a respite from the noise.
But that didn't come before Clark proved to be undeniable on the court, showing she is indeed here to stay.
Robin Lundberg is a media veteran and hoops head who has spent the bulk of his career with iconic brands like Sports Illustrated and ESPN. His insights have also been featured on platforms such as Fox and CNN and he can currently be heard hosting shows for Sirius XM and on his burgeoning YouTube show. And now he brings his basketball expertise to Women's Fastbreak on SI!