Indiana Fever star Caitlin Clark covers SLAM 252

Candace Parker. Tamika Catchings. A’ja Wilson. Breanna Stewart. Elena Delle Donne. Maya Moore.

These are just a few of the WNBA players who have had impressive and surprising debut seasons.

Add to that list Caitlin Clark, the No. 1 pick in the 2024 WNBA Draft.

Not since Parker, who first and only player to win both Rookie of the Year and MVP in the same season: Has any rookie had as much of an impact on the league and everyone and everything around it as Clark?

Call it the Caitlin Clark effect.

SLAM 252 featuring Caitlin Clark is available now.

Record-breaking performances. Sold-out games across the country. Fans packing up and traveling wherever she goes. More eyes on the W than ever before. Clark is the talk of the town at the W.

But there’s a flip side. There’s nonstop heated debate and discussion on sports talk shows and social media, all about Clark and her impact on the league. Is she getting too much press? Is she being portrayed as the WNBA’s savior when there are other players who have kept the league alive for so long? Depends on who you ask, and what time of day you ask.

You could argue that there has never been more pressure on a player entering the league. Expectations were high from the start, even when Clark was still in college at Iowa, where she set the NCAA Division I scoring record with 3,951 total points. A lightning-quick point guard with quick hands, she also became the Big Ten’s all-time assist leader (1,144) and made the most three-pointers in a season with 201. So when she entered the league, all eyes were on her, as expected.

But ironically, Clark hasn’t said much about the hype and fanfare surrounding her first season in the W. Instead, she seems to have chosen to just play her game, seemingly content to break record after record after record and help her Indiana Fever team do the same. In the process, she’s helping to create a kind of excitement for women’s basketball that hasn’t been seen in a while.

The list of WNBA records Clark broke is long and exhaustive. There are almost too many to mention. They include setting the WNBA single-game assist record (19) against the Dallas Wings, recording the first triple-double for a rookie in WNBA history against the New York Liberty, and breaking the record for most assists in a season by a rookie.

You can’t help but tie the rookie single-game three-pointer record: Clark made seven early in the season in the Fever’s game against the Washington Mystics. Other records include 21 games with at least 15 points and five assists, the most ever in a single WNBA season, and becoming the first rookie in WNBA history to record 400 points, 100 rebounds and 150 assists in a single season.

Clark was also selected to the WNBA All-Star Game in July and finished with 10 assists, the most for a rookie in the history of the prestigious sport.

This incredible rookie season also has a not-so-stellar stat line: She has the most turnovers in a debut game in WNBA history, with 10 in the Fever opener against the Connecticut Sun. She also has the most turnovers in a single season of any player in WNBA history. There’s certainly work to be done in that area, but overall, the Caitlin Clark Effect cannot be denied.

And it went beyond just her individual play.

The Fever clinched their first playoff berth since 2016 and currently sit at No. 6 as we go to press. Additionally, the WNBA has announced that the 2025 All-Star Game will be held in Indianapolis. The 21st WNBA All-Star Game, scheduled for Saturday, July 19, 2025, will mark the first time that Indy will host the league’s midseason showcase.

The Fever, already on an upward trajectory after acquiring No. 1 Aliyah Boston last year along with Kelsey Mitchell, Lexie Hull and NaLyssa Smith, have soared to new heights with Clark’s arrival. This starting five earned a playoff spot after a strong run following the Olympic break, winning seven in eight games. Together, they’ve transformed into a team whose ceiling continues to rise.

Her hot shooting for Hull has her leading the league in three-point percentage (49.2 percent). Mitchell, who has had her own personal tear this summer, is fifth in three-pointers made this season (96) and ninth in points per game. Clark leads the league in assists, averaging 8.5 per game, and is leading 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 league in scoring (89.7 ppg) and set a season-high 100 points in a win over the Chicago Sky on August 30. Indiana also made the most three-pointers of the month with 72.

On August 16, the Fever defeated the Phoenix Mercury 98-89, marking the first time Indiana has won a regular-season series with Phoenix since the 2015 regular season. Less than two weeks later, Indiana defeated the Sun 84-80 for the first time since 2021.

The team’s success has also extended to its coach, Christie Sides, who formally participated in the Coach of the Year chat and was named WNBA Coach of the Month for August after leading the Fever to a 5-1 record. Sides is the first head coach in franchise history to earn the honor.

Clark has also garnered league-wide honors. In August, she was named both the WNBA Eastern Conference Player of the Month and WNBA Rookie of the Month. It was the third time she has earned Rookie of the Month honors, having also earned that recognition in May and July, and it was the first time she has been named Player of the Month. She was recently recognized as WNBA Eastern Conference Player of the Week for the second time in her young career, and she also leads her rookie class in scoring, assists, steals, free throws made and minutes played.

The player many are calling the female Stephen Curry has been under the microscope since she entered the league, and the pressure has been on all season. Whether you agree with it or not, whether you’re a fan or not, Clark has risen to the challenge, met (and in many ways exceeded) expectations and made her mark on the game after just one year as a pro.

The Caitlin Clark experience has only just begun, but it’s already in full swing

Fasten your seatbelts.

Photos via Getty Images.