Caitlin Clark She is at the top of the athlete world, as she has been for the past year. So it makes sense that it was named after her. TIME Player of the Year Tuesday morning.
Clark spent his time in Iowa and indiana fever In 2024, he captivated the sports world with his brilliant 3-point shooting and agile play. She was almost unanimously awarded Rookie of the Year.Won 66 out of 67 votes) and it’s over 4th place in overall MVP voting As the guard with the highest votes.
When asked about his past year, Clark told TIME it was “historic.” “… I was able to capture a lot of people who had never watched women’s basketball, let alone women’s sports, and turn them into fans.”
in her first year WNBAclark broke numerous records — on and off the court.
Clark broke the WNBA single-season assists record with 336 assists, led the league with 8.4 assists per game, set a new single-game WNBA record with 19 assists against the Dallas Wings, broke the rookie assists record, and led the league with 8.4 assists per game. We broke the scoring record. The record for most 3-pointers by a rookie became the first rookie in WNBA history to record a triple-double (twice), and the list could go on.
She received the most All-Star Game fan votes by a wide margin, had the most assists for a rookie in an All-Star Game, and almost broke the All-Star Game record for total assists.
The Fever played a league-high 36 games on national television and averaged more than 17,000 fans per game at Gainbridge Fieldhouse over the summer. The Fever shattered the previous WNBA attendance record with a total of more than 300,000 fans coming through the gates in 2024.
Economist Ryan Brewer estimates that one in six tickets to a WNBA game this year will be tied to Clark, so she got fans off the street in droves. Past IndyStar articles. Brewer also estimated that Clark was responsible for 26.5% of the league’s total action.
Claconomics: We break down the complexities of paying the Fever star what she’s actually worth.
Clark received about $76,000 from the WNBA in her rookie season, but her lucrative endorsement deals have put her on the list of highest-paid female athletes in the world. Clark is projected to earn approximately $11.1 million in 2024, making her the highest-paid female basketball player in the world and the 10th highest-paid player, according to research by Sportico. The money comes from deals with Nike, State Farm (for which she appears in national commercials), Gatorade, Panini, Wilson, Hy-Vee, Xfinity, Gainbridge and Lilly.
Clark’s ascension was a catalyst for the WNBA, but the league was already growing exponentially before she entered the fray in 2024. Much of that growth has come thanks to black players, including three-time MVP and Las Vegas Aces center A’ja Wilson. New York Liberty MVP Jonquel Jones and the Connecticut Sun’s DeWanna Bonner and Alyssa Thomas.
Clark, a white woman from West Des Moines, Iowa, has unintentionally become a flashpoint for some racially motivated discussions across the league in a predominantly black league. While speaking with TIME, Clark wanted to stop those conversations.
“I’ve got everything, but I would say I have privilege as a white person,” Clark told TIME. “A lot of the really good players in the league have been black players. This league is kind of built around them. I think it’s very important that we appreciate that more, highlight it, talk about it, and make sure that brands and companies continue to invest in the players that make this league great. I have to keep trying to change that. “If we can elevate black women more, that would be a beautiful thing.”
This article originally appeared in the Indianapolis Star. Indiana Fever star Caitlin Clark has been named the 2024 TIME Player of the Year.
