Candace Parker. Tamika Catchings. Wilson. Brianna Stewart. Elena Delle Donne. Maya Moore.
These are some of the WNBA players who have had impressive, eye-opening seasons.
Add to that list Caitlin Clark, the No. 1 pick in the 2024 WNBA Draft.
Not since Parker—who went on to become the first again only player to win both Rookie of the Year and MVP in the same season—you have a rookie who has impacted the League and everyone and everything around you like Clark.
Call it the Caitlin Clark Effect.
SLAM 252 featuring Caitlin Clark is available now.
Concerts break records. Sales of games across the country. Fans pack up and go wherever he goes. More eyeballs than ever before in W. Clark has been the subject of discussion in W.
But there is an opposite, too. The heated arguments and debates on sports talk shows and all over social media are endless, all about Clark and his impact on the League. Do you stress too much? Has he been painted as the savior of the WNBA when there are other players who have stayed here and held the League for so long? It depends on who you ask—and what time of day you ask.
One might argue that there has never been so much pressure put on a player coming into the League. Expectations were high from the jump, even when Clark was in college at Iowa. There, he set the NCAA Division I record with 3,951 total points. A quick point guard with quick hands, he is also the Big Ten’s all-time assist leader (1,144) and made the most three-pointers in a single season with 201. So, coming to the League, all eyes were on him. .
But, strangely, Clark didn’t say much about the excitement and acclaim surrounding his first season at W. He seems to have chosen, instead, to just play his game and seems content to break record after record and help him in Indiana. Team Fever does the same. All the while, she is helping to cheer women’s basketball, the likes of which has not been seen in a long time.
The list of WNBA records broken by Clark is long and exhaustive. There are probably too many to mention. It includes setting the WNBA single-game assist record (19) against the Dallas Wings, recording the first triple-double in WNBA history against the New York Liberty, and breaking the record for most assists in a season by a rookie.
You can’t leave out tying the rookie single-game three-point record—Clark made seven of them in the season opener in the Fever’s game against the Washington Mystics. Other records include 21 games with at least 15 points and 5 assists, the most in a single WNBA season, and becoming the first rookie in WNBA history to record 400 points, 100 rebounds and 5 assists. -150 per season.
Clark was also named to the WNBA All-Star Game in July and finished with 10 assists, the most by a rookie in the storied game’s history.
This incredible rookie season also included some not-so-great stats: She recorded the most turnovers in a first game in WNBA history, with 10 in the Fever’s opener against the Connecticut Sun. She also has the most turnovers in a single season of any player in WNBA history. There is work to be done in that department, but overall, the Caitlin Clark Effect is undeniable.
And it goes beyond his individual games.
The Fever clinched their first playoff berth since 2016 and currently sit at No. 6 as we go to print. In addition, the WNBA announced that the 2025 All-Star Game will be held in Indianapolis. The 21st WNBA All-Star Game, scheduled for Saturday, July 19, 2025, marks the first time Indy has hosted the League’s midseason exhibition.
The Fever—already on an upward trajectory after last year’s acquisitions of Aliyah Boston, along with Kelsey Mitchell, Lexie Hull and NaLyssa Smith—took a bigger leap with the addition of Clark. The five-game start secured a qualifying spot after leading the way following the Olympic break, winning seven of eight games. Together, they have transformed into a team with an ever-rising ceiling.
Hull’s hot shooting ranks him first in the League in three-point percentage (49.2 percent). Mitchell, who has been on his own this summer, is fifth in three-pointers this season (96) and ninth in points per game. Clark is the leader in assists, averaging 8.5 per game and is first in the league in three-pointers made with 111. Boston is fifth in field goal percentage (52.8 percent) and eighth in blocks per game (1.3).
In August, the Fever led the entire league in scoring (89.7 ppg) and scored a season-best 100 points in a win against the Chicago Sky on August 30. Indiana also made the most three-point field goals in the month with 72 .
On August 16, the Fever defeated the Phoenix Mercury 98-89, marking the first time since the 2015 regular season that Indiana swept its regular season series with Phoenix. Less than two weeks later, Indiana knocked off the Suns, 84-80, for the first time since 2021.
The team’s success also extended to its coach, Christie Sides, who officially entered the Coach of the Year discussion and was named WNBA Coach of the Month for August after guiding the Fever to a 5-1 record. Sides is the first coach in franchise history to receive the honor.
Clark also earned All-League honors. In August, she was named the WNBA Eastern Conference Player of the Month and the WNBA Rookie of the Month. It was his third time receiving the Rookie of the Month award, as he was also honored in May and July, when he marked the first time he was named Player of the Month. She was recently named the WNBA Eastern Conference Player of the Week for the second time in her young career, and leads her rookie class in scoring, assists, steals, free throws and minutes played. And on September 13, she broke the WNBA’s all-time assists record, previously held by the legendary Ticha Penicheiro.
This player, who many call the female Stephen Curry, has been working under a microscope before he entered the League, and the heat has been watched throughout the season. Whether you agree or not, whether you’re a fan or not, Clark has faced pressure, lived up to expectations (even exceeded them in many ways) and solidified his name in the sport after only one year as a professional. .
Caitlin Clark’s experience has just begun but is already in full swing
Buckle up.
Photos via Getty Images.
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