Caitlin Clark and the Indiana Fever’s absence from the remainder of the WNBA playoffs has had a huge impact on viewing figures, but the league still has cause to be delighted.
Game 1 of the playoff semifinal between the New York Liberty and Las Vegas Aces on Friday attracted an average viewership of 929,000, with a peak of 1.2 million. The figures represented a 60 per cent increase on 2023, highlighting the league’s growing popularity even without its biggest star in action.
No. 1 overall pick Clark has had a transformative effect on the league, summed up by the huge audiences that tuned in for the Fever’s Round 1 playoff clashes with the Connecticut Sun. Fans watched in their masses as the former Iowa sensation chased championship glory in her rookie season.
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Game 1 of the series set a new WNBA record with a viewership of 1.84 million, and that benchmark was smashed just a few days later for Game 2 when an enormous audience of 2.54 million viewers tuned in. Ultimately, the Fever lost both games, bringing the curtain down on Clark’s rookie season.
But the 22-year-old’s stardom continues to have a positive impact, even when she is sitting at home for the offseason, with mainstream interest in the league growing. But there can be no denying Clark is the one who can move the needle like no other, with Sunday’s Game 1 between the Sun and the Minnesota Lynx drawing a viewership of just 650,000.
Caitlin Clark has had a transformative effect on the WNBA (
2024 Getty Images)
Kelsey Mitchell, Clark’s Fever teammate, says the point guard has changed the lives of WNBA players. She said last month when asked about the increased interest in the WNBA: “I think the reality of it is that I don’t think people would know without [Clark].
“She’s done an unbelievable job of bringing her own fans and people that support her, but, for me, I kind of laugh at it and I embrace it at the same time because I always flew under the radar. I’ve always kind of been that person that is very conservative, very introvert, so now I get to see the flip side of it.”
Clark was the No. 1 overall pick in April’s draft after four outstanding years with the Hawkeyes. She and the Fever made a slow start, going 1-8 before finding their feet and finishing third in the Eastern Conference with a 20-20 record.
Clark finished the regular season ranked seventh in points per game with 19.2, and she led the league with 8.4 assists and 3.1 made field goals from beyond the arc per game. Her performances led to her being named the WNBA Rookie of the Year.
I don’t think she has anything to do with it. I think it’s one the bad pay of the Aces and the VERY BAD Officiating though out the year. All of these referees need to be fired or replaced. So many games that fouls should have been called and they weren’t, calls that shouldn’t have been called but were? Some times you wonder if they were betting on these games???