Caitlin Clark has brought unprecedented attention to the WNBA, with this season’s viewership numbers hitting record highs, merchandise sales soaring, a significant increase in young girls tuning in and arena sellouts. Perhaps the product was already good and just needed a boost to achieve these impressive figures, which don’t seem to be diminishing anytime soon.
On “The Dan Patrick Show,” Dan Patrick delves into the rivalry between rookies Angel Reese and Caitlin Clark, pointing out that Reese often plays the victim, starting with her reaction to a flagrant foul she committed against Clark in their last meeting. Reese expressed her dissatisfaction with the officiating, saying that “some players have a special whistle,” clearly referring to Clark. Dan notes, “she’s leaning in to be the bad guy” and that “she is creating business” with those statements.
Perhaps the most striking part of the discussion was Dan’s candid assessment of Reese’s gameplay, saying, “there’s nothing exciting about her game, she’s just a really good solid player.” He continued, “there’s no signature, nothing about her game that makes you say ‘oh my god, did you see that.'” I agree with Dan’s assessment of Reese’s game, who’s averaging 12.1 PPG and 10.2 RPG in 30 minutes over 13 games this season. While her style may not be flashy, as a rookie, she ranks fourth in rebounds per game and, more importantly, is only 22 years old with a promising future ahead where her game could become more “exciting.” In a league with almost none dunks, it’s challenging to create highlights outside of three-point shooting, which Caitlin Clark excels at.
Every great story has two characters: the hero and the villain,the protagonist and the antagonist, good and evil. This WNBA season, it appears these characters are rookies Angel Reese and Caitlin Clark, whose rivalry dates back to college, where Reese claimed victory in most encounters. In the professional arena, after two games between the Chicago Sky and the Indiana Fever, it is Clark’s Fever who have secured victories. Both games have featured physical plays, slightly out of the ordinary, against Clark-first a shoulder check from Chennedy Carter and the most recent, a flagrant foul for a hit to the face by Reese, which many argue wasn’t warranted. In any basketball league, that hit is a flagrant foul, and while it might be judged as a play-on-the-ball action, the reality is that the hit was excessive. Reese saw her opportunity and took it.
The rivalry continues on Sunday, the 23rd, with the third part of this season between the Chicago Sky (4-9) and the Indiana Fever (5-10). The Fever have secured both victories in close games, and as previous encounters have shown, there will likely be more controversial moments in the upcoming match. There is always something to watch in this intense rivalry.
