Sports fans, WNBA players and executives rally behind Caitlin Clark

I recently called an old friend who is a sports enthusiast and we spent the first 20 minutes talking about women’s professional basketball.

Neither of us had ever shown any interest in the WNBA, but we had both become Caitlin Clark fans at the same time, without each other knowing it.

There are transformational players who change the balance of competition in a league or change the way the game is played, but it’s rare to come across players who lift an entire league on their shoulders.

When Clark entered the WNBA, there was a lot of informed gossip that she wouldn’t look all that special against the best women players in the world after her storied college career. And yes, there was an adjustment period, but as the WNBA playoffs begin, it’s safe to say that Clark’s skeptics were categorically wrong.

“The delusional fan base that follows her has disrespected WNBA players by saying she’s going to go to that league and tear it apart,” legendary University of Connecticut women’s coach Geno Auriemma said in June.

Are you dreaming? Clark had the best rookie season in WNBA history, turning everything she touched into ratings or viewership.

For all the jealousy and even hostility she receives from other WNBA players, Clark is doing them a favor. The WNBA could have an unlimited advertising and marketing budget and not produce anything like the results of putting a “C-frame” on the court.

Every day with Clark is extraordinary. In their final regular-season game against the Indiana Fever, the lowly Washington Mystics brought the event to the NBA arena and drew 20,711, the most for a game in WNBA history.

The Mystics usually play in an arena that seats 4,200.

The Fever have averaged 17,000 home and 15,000 away attendance, both more than other teams by a healthy margin. When the team appears in an opposing arena, the lion’s share of fans usually support Clark rather than the home team.