SI

Awesome Photo of Caitlin Clark, Fans Taking in Maya Moore Ceremony Was Pure Art

A proverbial passing of the torch.

Josh Wilson

Caitlin Clark of the Indiana Fever
Caitlin Clark of the Indiana Fever / Grace Smith/IndyStar / USA TODAY NETWORK
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Saturday, the Minnesota Lynx immortalized Maya Moore's impact on the franchise by retiring her number, 23, in Minnesota. Moore gave a speech to Lynx fans to tie a bow on her lasting impact on both the Lynx and WNBA.

Sat on the bench taking in the moment was Indiana Fever rookie star Caitlin Clark, who is one of the likely leading faces of WNBA stadom that Moore paved a path for. This photo of Clark taking in Moore, with so many young fans in Clark jerseys behind her, perfectly captures that idea:

Clark has set the pace this year, leading the league by far in jersey sales. She boasts partnerships with State Farm, Gatorade, and more that liken to the attention Moore generated. Moore was the first female basketball player to sign with the Jordan brand in 2011.

Moore's speech acknowledged the savvy scheduling of holding the ceremony against the Fever, as she discussed one of her iconic career photos that happened to come against the Indiana franchise:

"All you see in that picture is the [Indiana] fans just speechless as the shot is going up and then, you know, pump fake, one dribble right, it goes up," Moore said, H/T ESPN. "All I remember is it was so eerily quiet after the shot went in and then [Brunson] hugged me and I'm like, 'Oh, I'm back to life.'"

Moore last played in the WNBA in 2018. She announced that she would miss the 2019 season to focus on off-court aspirations, which included criminal justice advocacy. She officially announced her retirement in 2023.

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Josh Wilson
JOSH WILSON

Josh Wilson is the news director of the Breaking and Trending News team at Sports Illustrated. Before joining SI in 2024, he worked for FanSided in a variety of roles, most recently as senior managing editor of the brand’s flagship site. He has also served as a general manager of Sportscasting, the sports arm of a start-up sports media company, where he oversaw the site’s editorial and business strategy. Wilson has a bachelor’s degree in mass communications from SUNY Cortland and a master’s in accountancy from the Gies College of Business at the University of Illinois. He loves a good nonfiction book and enjoys learning and practicing Polish. Wilson lives in Chicago but was raised in upstate New York. He spent most of his life in the Northeast and briefly lived in Poland, where he ate an unhealthy amount of pastries for six months.

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