Indiana Fever rookie phenom Caitlin Clark may be the most popular WNBA player today. But she was not the league’s best as the WNBA MVP voting revealed.
Las Vegas Aces star center A’ja Wilson won her third MVP in a runaway fashion with 670 points while Clark finished a distant fourth with 130 points.
Minnesota Lynx forward Napheesa Collier (467 points) and New York Liberty star Breanna Stewart (295 points) finished second and third, respectively.
Clark, whose Fever games drew the most crowds and set WNBA records, did not get a single vote for first and second-place ballots.
According to ESPN, Clark is the first point guard in WNBA history to have the most points. She is also the first rookie in WNBA history to have the most double-doubles, most points, most assists, to record two triple-doubles, to be named Player of the Month and Rookie of the Month in the same month and to produce 20+ points, 15+ assists and 5+ rebounds in a game.
Wilson also had a record-setting season for the Aces, becoming the first WNBA player to score over 1,000 points in a single season—she finished with 1,021 points to break the WNBA scoring record.
The Aces star also set a WNBA record with 451 rebounds in a single season.
Wilson’s third MVP marked the first time she won the award unanimously. Wilson earned all 67 first-place votes.
The Caitlin Clark Impact
Clark’s arrival has transformed the once-moribund Fever franchise as the most popular team in the WNBA.
According to Associated Press’ Tim Reynolds, Fever games averaged 16,084 attendance per game while non-Fever games only drew 8,552 per game, a stark 88% difference.
Clarks’ season finale against the Washington Mystics on September 19 was the largest in WNBA history, drawing 20, 711.
The game was played at Capital One Arena, the Wizards’ NBA homecourt to accomodate the record crowd. The Mystics’ homecourt at Entertainment & Sports Arena only has a capacity of 4,200.
Clark also made every Fever game a must-see TV.
Fox executive Michael Mulvihill reported that Clark’s games on TV averaged 1.178 million viewers, per New York Post. Clark’s games tripled the viewers for all other WNBA games which only drew an average of 394,000.
Clark has led the Fever’s Cinderella run as they crashed the WNBA playoffs as the No. 6 seed after a 1-7 start. They will play No. 3 Connecticut Sun in the best-of-three series which begins on September 22.
Despite’s Clark’s skyrocketing popularity, she is only earning a meager $76,535 salary in her rookie season. She signed a four-year, $338,056 rookie deal after she was drafted No. 1 overall in the WNBA draft.
Clark makes up for that with her endorsement deals, which includes an eight-year, $28 million contract with Nike.
Caitlin Clark’s Autographed Rookie Card Becomes Most Expensive in WNBA History
Clark’s popularity also made her the most bankable female basketball player.
The Fever star’s rookie cards have become the most-sought after.
according to The Collectibles Guru, Clark’s 2024 Panini Instant WNBA Draft Blue Viper Rookie Auto 1/1 sold for a record $84,000 as it became the most expensive WNBA card of all time.
Clark now holds the record for the two most expensive WNBA cards.
Her Bowman U Superfractor Auto 1/1 sold for $78,000 in January, which was a record then before Clark shattered it again this week.
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