Caitlin Clark was selected as the No. 1 pick in the 2024 WNBA draft by the Indiana Fever. She will be playing alongside Aliyah Boston, Erica Wheeler and Kelsey Mitchell.

Clark’s entourage to the draft included her parents Brent and Anne Nizzi-Clark, brothers Blake and Colin, boyfriend Connor McCaffery, Iowa teammates Gabbie Marshall, Kate Martin, Jada Gyamfi and coach Lisa Bluder.

Right after the 6-foot guard was selected, coach Bluder was seen at the Clark family table, crying as Anne Clark tried to console her. Caitlin is the first No. 1 in the WNBA and the NBA for the state of Iowa.

Caitlin Clark is also the second top-5 pick in both men’s and women’s pro league after Sacramento Kings’ Keegan Murray (No. 4 pick).

Kate Martin was the surprise selection of the night as she was picked 18th overall by the Las Vegas Aces. This is the first time since 2000 that two Iowa Hawkeyes players were picked in the same draft.

Caitlin Clark has a historic draft night

The draft coverage on ESPN became the most watched, drawing 2.45 million viewers beating the 2004 WNBA draft, which was watched by 601,000 fans and saw Diana Taurasi go to the Phoenix Mercury.

Caitlin Clark also set personal records as she became Fanatics’ top-selling draft pick on any draft night in history, just two hours after the announcement. The record was previously held by Trevor Lawrence.

As a ripple effect of her selection, the ticket prices for all Indiana Fever games have increased and the Aces have moved their games to a larger arena to accommodate all the incoming fans.

The Fever hosted a free draft party at the Gainbridge Fieldhouse and more than 17,000 fans claimed the tickets. The team’s Instagram account has seen an increase of 75,000+ followers in the past seven days.

Caitlin Clark was also named the Academic All-American Team Member of the Year for the second straight year by CSC. She graduates from Iowa University with a degree in marketing and a 3.64 GPA.

Despite never winning a national championship, Clark was an exceptional player as she took the Hawkeyes to the Final Four twice, for the first time since 1993. Her impact extended beyond the court as she brought attention and viewership to women’s basketball.

For all her efforts, the Hawkeyes have announced that they will retire her #22 jersey and she will join Michelle Edwards (No. 30, 1985-1988) and Megan Gustafson (No. 10, 2015-2019) in the rafters.

Clark has shaken the world of sports in the USA.

The phenomenon that Caitlin Clark has become and her impact on women’s basketball is reaching beyond what happens on the court. For at least two decades, a figure with the popular impact of Caitlin Clark had not arrived in the WNBA, surpassing even stars from other sports.

Before her, the great star of the WNBA was Diana Taurasi, the legendary player who won three championships and is the all-time leading scorer in the league’s history, with 10,108 points scored throughout a career that paved the way for the arrival of new stars like Clark or Angel Reese.

Caitlin Clark dominates Indiana Fever practice, strikes fear in WNBA

However, Caitlin’s impact has also been reflected in the economic field, so recently some comments comparing what Taurasi has earned in her career and what Clark is currently earning have emerged on social media.

Days ago, a scandal arose due to the disparity in salaries between a player like Clark, who will earn less than $400,000 annually in her first year, and NBA players who earn millions. However, Clark is leveraging her popularity to make money through NIL (name, image, and likeness), which allows college athletes to earn money through external sponsorships.

Too much disparity among stars?

In Taurasi’s case, still active with the Phoenix Mercury, she has a total net worth of $3.5 million earned over 20 years of career. Considered as the White Mamba, Taurasi is still considered by many to date as the GOAT of women’s basketball.

But that figure pales in comparison to the $28 million that Caitlin Clark will earn over 8 years solely for her association with Nike, who will launch a shoe inspired by her. In other words, only for that single sponsorship, Clark will earn $3.5 million in a year, the same amount that Taurasi has earned in two decades.

Is it unfair? Many could say yes, but the reality is that both lived in different times. Until three years ago, there was no NIL, which allows NCAA athletes to earn money that they may not be able to earn in professionalism. Clark is simply taking advantage of the current rules to ensure her economic well-being, although there will always be the debate of whether Taurasi (and other players) should have earned more money for their sacrifice on the court. The answer is yes, but Caitlin is not to blame for that.

Not a single basketball fan was surprised when the Indiana Fever selected Caitlin Clark with the No. 1 overall pick in the WNBA Draft.

Everyone assumed that would happen, especially after the season she just had at Iowa.
What people didn’t expect, however, was for Clark’s teammate, Kate Martin, to come off the board in the second round of the draft.

The Las Vegas Aces selected Martin 18th overall on Monday night.

Martin was nicknamed “The Glue” while at Iowa because she always kept the team together.

She played great defense, rebounded well, and would always come up big in crunch time.

As you’d expect, Clark was thrilled that Martin got drafted as early as she did.

Clark posted a selfie with Martin on Instagram along with this caption: “Couldn’t be happier for you.”

Martin spoke to ESPN after getting drafted by the Aces. She told Holly Rowe that she attended the draft in Brooklyn simply to support Clark.

“There are a lot of emotions right now,” Martin said.

“I’m really happy to be here. I was here to support Caitlin, but I was hoping to hear my name called.

All I wanted was an opportunity and I got it. I’m really excited.”

WNBA training camp begins on April 28. We’ll find out then if Martin can make an impact.