Indiana Fever Caitlin Clark (22) - Wendell Cruz/USA TODAY Sports
The WNBA has skyrocketed in popularity in recent months, mostly thanks to its new crop of stars who emerged this past season. They have turned women’s basketball mainstream, with more eyes on the sport than ever before.
Two of the league’s newest stars are some of the biggest names in basketball right now: Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese. It is possible (and likely) that a sports fan has heard one or both of these names, without even watching a single WNBA game (or even knowing they are from the WNBA).
That is the level of transcendence the two stars have brought to the game. Therefore, it only makes sense that the two are far and away the favorites to win the WNBA’s Rookie of the Year Award after the season’s conclusion. Only one can win it, however, and the favorite to do so is Caitlin Clark.
Caitlin the Heavy Favorite
There were some questions about whether or not Caitlin Clark’s impressive college stats would translate to the WNBA court, but those questions were quickly answered with a resounding “yes” as soon as she stepped on the court. Clark took the league by storm, quickly rising to fame and becoming its face.
This emergence into the spotlight did not come without some controversy, particularly with Clark’s rival players giving her a rough time. But Clark responded simply by being herself on the court, allowing her natural talent to take over, and that has led her to becoming the Rookie of the Year favorite.
Clark currently possesses –2000 odds to win the award, which are almost double the –1050 odds at the beginning of July. That is thanks to the numerous rookie records that she has already broken.
Through just 28 games in the WNBA, Clark has already set the single-season rookie record for assists, currently with 232 (the previous record was 228 by Ticha Penicheiro). Clark was named an All-Star in her first season and put up the most assists by a rookie in WNBA All-Star Game history, with ten recorded in that game.
Assists Machine
Clark also broke the record for most assists in a single game, putting up 19 in one contest. She recorded the first triple-double by a rookie in WNBA history, and the first in franchise history. Clark also became the fastest player to reach 350 points and 150 assists in a single WNBA season.
“To me, Caitlin Clark is the Rookie of the Year right now,” said FOX Sports reporter Rachel Nichols. “She has impacted winning in a bigger way than anyone else in the rookie class. And her team is on pace to finish a lot better this year than it did last year. Whereas right now, Angel Reese’s Sky are not on pace to improve.”
If that was not all enough, Clark has recorded a double-double in 15 straight games, destroying the previous record. Overall, Clark is averaging 17.8 points, 5.8 rebounds, and 8.3 assists per game, while shooting 41.2 percent from the field and 32.8 percent from deep.
To shift matters even more into her favor, there are still 12 games to go in the WNBA season. This gives Clark ample time to not only break more records, but extend her current stats so far up that future players would have a tough time breaking them. All this is to say, her legacy is currently singlehandedly being cemented.
Since the Fever are currently 13-15, it is unlikely that Clark will win the league’s MVP award. But given her otherworldly rookie stats, there is no doubt that she deserves to win the 2024 Rookie of the Year Award.
