Caitlin Clark: Revolutionizing Women’s Basketball On and Off the Court

Caitlin Clark, the player who is revolutionizing women’s basketball

“They shouldn’t let girls play with boys.”

The child’s father repeatedly tells the anecdote while smiling, making it clear that it was not as it usually happens, that the so-called weaker sex asks for help in sports so that the coaches do not let boys play with girls. This time it was the other way around, what the mother of a boy asked was that Caitlin Clark, the new basketball sensation in the United States, not play with men. It happened when she was 8 years old and she was already so good that she sent the boys to school, as they say in the USA. In reality, she surpassed and even humiliated them with her abilities. To the point that some parents asked for it to be banned.

It was only for a couple of years that the new women’s basketball star lived with boys. It was because in West Des Moines, a not-so-big city in Iowa where her family lived, her father couldn’t find girls for her to play with… Then, when she surprised by surpassing the boys, she started playing with older girls, always standing out. We are talking about a special talent that stood out not only in basketball. She also played softball, volleyball, soccer, tennis and even golf, always making it clear that she had a special ability for the sport. Although soccer was surely where she developed the most, between the ages of 8 and 16, when she decided to focus on basketball, after ESPN placed her first in the national ranking of high school players.

The key step came at age 12, when he joined the All Iowa Attack at Dowling Catholic High School, where he played until he graduated. Her father, aware of the diamond in the rough that he had in her, did everything to promote her talent, accompanying her to training sessions and matches, in addition to taking her to see matches of her references. In that sense she had two. One was Maya Moore, a star of the Lynx in the WNBA, whom she could go see because her father drove the almost four hours from Iowa to Minnesota. And the other was Harrison Barnes, an NBA player from the same high school, who would first arrive at the University of North Carolina and later have – until today – a valuable career in the best league in the world.

Clark shone in the four years he was at that high school. He did it from the first year, in which he averaged 15.3 points, 4.7 assists and 2.3 steals, within a team that has already started to make waves, winning 19 of the 24 games. In his second season he climbed to 27.1 points (second highest scorer in the state), 6.5 rebounds, 4 assists and 2.3 recoveries. She was in the state’s ideal quintet and was the best player in the Central Iowa Metro League, after being the leader of a team that won 20 of 24 games.

Clark is a 22-year-old, 1m83 point guard who is revolutionizing women’s basketball with her style and skill combo.

In those first two years, that passion coexisted with that of soccer, until they advised him to decide on one and he ended up deciding to only play basketball, although his friends and family claim that he took some things from soccer. He played as an offensive midfielder and there he learned team play, the ability to look at the entire court and pass the ball to teammates with an advantage, as he continues to do today, beyond his status as a devastating scorer. “Frankly, and I’m not trying to brag about this, I think she probably could have had the same kind of talent in football as she did in basketball. She could have been on US youth national teams,” her father Brent acknowledged.

Already focused on basketball, she exploded in her third year and on February 4, 2019, she scored 60 points in a game, the second mark in the history of women’s 5-on-5 in the state. A top campaign that allowed her to be selected as Iowa’s best player. In the last one she climbed to 33.4 points, 8 rebounds, 4 assists and 2.7 steals, once again being the state’s top scorer, only falling short of winning a title. , since they lost in the regional final. The local newspaper chose her as the best state athlete and she was called to compete in the two most prestigious events, the McDonald’s All American Game and the Jordan Brand Classic.

At 18, Clark was a national star and that is why he had dozens of university offers, of which only three remained standing: Notre Dame, his parents’ favorite, Iowa State and Iowa. They claim that She chose the latter basically to stay close to home and play for a coach (Lisa Bluder) who had a style of play she liked and a reputation for empowering point guards. Her impact was immediate. In her first college game she scored 27 points and weeks later she achieved her first triple double. That first season she finished as the team leader in points, assists, field goals and three-pointers. Crazy.

In her second year she began to add individual records and continued to be the leader in different categories (such as points and assists), in addition to leading her team to the Big Ten title, being chosen the best player. However, in the national championship, the Hawkeyes were upset in the second round on one of Clark’s rare bad days.

Caitlin Clark during a press conference. She also has charisma

In its third season it was already causing a sensation throughout the country. The stadiums filled up to see it and the television audience skyrocketed. While she continued to break records and, after winning the Big Ten title, she led her team to the final of the national championship, but was defeated by the Louisina State of Angel Reese, known as the Barbie of the Swamps, another NCAA star . Precisely from whom she would take revenge just days and a year ago after having been humiliated by her rival with some gestures and attitudes that were highly criticized in the environment. Clark won, without fanfare, but scoring 41 points and 9 triples in a long-awaited rematch.

Caitlin Clark playing for Iowa Hawkeyes

Along the way she broke two historical records, the first among women, by surpassing the 3,667 points that Lynette Woodward had scored until she finished her university career, in 1981. And four days later she also took the mark among men, surpassing the 3,667 of the legendary Pete Maravich, who had reached them 54 years earlier. One night, March 3, she once again promoted women’s basketball, which was once again on all the portals and TV channels. Tickets worth $5,000 were paid to be in the stadium.

If Sabrina Ionescu revolutionizes the WNBA with her shooting and scoring ability and can even afford to compete in a three-point tournament with Steph Curry, Clark emerges as her successor. Or, at least, as a continuation. Because, in reality, she will reach the best league in the world and within months. It is already known that the Indiana Fever was left with the privilege of choosing first in the draft and this will ensure that they have Clark, who will join Aliyah Boston, the #1 selection in the last draft, who comes from being the Rookie of the Year in the WNBA.

If we talk about the game, Clark is a 22-year-old, 1m83 point guard who is revolutionizing women’s basketball with her style and combo of skills. In her university career she averaged 27.7 points (32.3 this season), 7.9 assists and 7 rebounds, numbers that speak of her numerous virtues. Known for her scoring and ball-handling ability, Clark has been nicknamed the “invisible shooter,” after a joke she popularized by saying that her defenders “can’t see her.” Her ability to perform in crucial moments has also been impressive. Clark has been key in decisive games, proving her worth by achieving a triple-double with more than 40 points in the NCAA Final Tournament and leading her team, the Hawkeyes, to the Final Four with a stellar performance .

His game is different and that is why he has been compared, without exaggeration, to NBA stars such as Steph Curry, Damian Lillard and Trae Young due to his incredible shooting range and offensive skills. Precisely the man who changed basketball in the last decade and a half sees her as similar to him. “I really feel like the way he plays, the distance and the level of difficulty of his shots are obviously very similar to the way I play,” he admitted in an interview on CBS. “His shooting ability is his superpower, but the rest of his game is just as polished as that, so it’s something to watch,” Curry added. The 162 triples in a single college season that Curry scored in 2008 is another of the marks that Clark broke.

The audience for last year’s final exceeded 10 million viewers

The Clark phenomenon expands as he achieves new feats. Or records. The Fox network put a camera on her that follows her throughout the game and retransmits the signal on TikTok. ESPN has asked one of its reporters to dedicate herself exclusively to covering its information. Television audiences have skyrocketed and for the first time March Madness, as the final part of the national university championship is known, arouses more interest in the women’s branch than in the men’s. For example, a Hawkeyes game this season broke the women’s basketball attendance record with 55,646 spectators and the price of a ticket to see it increased by 250%.

Clark fever also reaches the screen. The audience for last year’s final surpassed 10 million viewers, doubling the previous high of 5.3 million. Last January, the loss to Ohio State that ended a 15-game winning streak for the Hawkeyes, had a golden minute of 3.9 million viewers and an average of 1.9, which is the best figure in the regular season since 2010.

With his talent, youth and carefree image, Clark is a magnet for brands and sponsorship contracts are pouring in. Nike takes advantage of it. On the night of the record, she prepared t-shirts with the phrase “you break it, you own it,” taking advantage of the fact that for three years the law has allowed university players to bill per image. The t-shirt did not go on sale, but could be reserved for $40. Yes, reserve, until he beat Maravich’s mark, days later.

Clark is the best-selling college athlete, even surpassing football stars, clearly the #1 sport in the country. Caitlin already has agreements with Gatorade, State Farm, Buick, Topps, Hy-Vee and H&R Block. According to the On3 portal, the value of her name and image clearly exceeds $1,000,000. When she arrives in the WNBA, a meager contract awaits her, of just $74,000, something stipulated by the salary scale, but there is no doubt that she will far exceed one million in sponsorships.

Clark is helping to revolutionize women’s basketball. On the court and outside. One more link in the chain of expected equality.

2024-04-05 07:19:00
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