This is Women's History Month, and I absolutely guarantee you that, in a hundred years, cultural historians will still be talking about what happened to women's basketball over the past two years and the absolutely revolutionary accomplishments of a player named Caitlin Clark. What Clark has done for the women's game over the past two basketball seasons eclipses anything I've ever seen, and I covered the explosion of pro basketball in the '80s and '90s behind players like Jordan, Magic, and Bird.
She first became noticed at the University of Iowa, where she broke NCAA scoring records and in the process seemed to break the law of basketball physics, by raining down jump shots from absurd distances. She was the unsurprising first pick in the WNBA draft, going to the Indiana Fever, where her presence took a sport that was largely invisible on the U.S. sports calendar and made it destination watching.
Consider this: in the past season, 23 WNBA games drew more than a million viewers. Clark's Indiana Fever team played in 20 of those games. TV viewership of the WNBA was up 300%, and 45% of broadcast revenue came from Clark's Fever team. Her games were watched by 200% more than games that didn't involve her. Merchandise was up 500%, and Clark's stuff represents 70% of that. Her economic impact to the city of Indianapolis, where the Fever play, was estimated to be $36 million.
The anecdotal evidence is even more striking. Last October, as my golf buddies — eight of us — lined up to tee off at Allentown Municipal, the conversation was all about the ongoing WNBA playoffs. And that kind of moment was replicated thousands and thousands of times around the country. Now, I've been a fan of the women's game for decades, but there were men in our foursome who barely knew there was a professional women's basketball league in the B.C. years — that's "Before Caitlin."
Now, the debates that have sprung up out of Clark's singular magnificence are essential ones. It was suggested that part of her appeal, both as a cultural force and a human cash register, is based upon the fact that she is a white woman with intelligence and easy grace and a boyfriend. Is this true? Well, of course it's true! The most threatening thing about Caitlin Clark is her 30-foot jump shot. But that doesn't make all the other stuff go away. She is a great, great player who has made a phenomenal impact and deserves every accolade she has earned, not to mention every dollar. In a truly capitalistic society, the WNBA couldn't pay her enough to match her impact, which is why, though she makes only a league-mandated $76,000 in salary, she earns an estimated $30 million in endorsements off the court.
The jealousy surrounding Clark that has shown up from other players in understandable. They have played in relative anonymity since 1976 and along comes this one player that has sent the nation gaga. Are you surprised there's jealousy? Is there anyone among us who has not been jealous; who can't comprehend why some are less than enamored than Clark?
So try, if you're a new WNBA fan, to understand that Clark will be pushed around, challenged at every juncture during every game, and sometimes unfairly criticized. But don't worry about Caitlin, she doesn't need your protection. She will emerge as the greatest women's player the game has ever seen, until the next one comes along.
