Over the past few days in New York City, Caitlin Clark yet again made headlines. The Iowa standout was in the Big Apple for Monday’s WNBA Draft, where it was a foregone conclusion that the Indiana Fever would choose her No. 1 overall.
Before the 2024 WNBA draft started, Clark made headlines by appearing on Saturday Night Live’s Weekend Update segment. She appeared alongside SNL’s Michael Che and Colin Jost and chided Che for past jokes he had made about women’s basketball. During her appearance, Clark also used her platform to recognize the great women’s basketball players who paved the way for her. She said WNBA legends such as Sheryl Swoopes, Lisa Leslie, Cynthia Cooper, Dawn Staley and her “basketball hero,” Maya Moore, “kicked down the door so [she] could walk inside.”
On Monday night, the Indiana Fever selected Clark as the first pick in the draft, to no one’s surprise. She walked onstage to accept the selection from the WNBA’s commissioner, Cathy Engelbert. Immediately after walking offstage, Clark told ESPN’s Holly Rowe, “I’ve dreamed of this moment since I was in second grade. More than anything, I’m just trying to soak it in.”
Clark joins a struggling Fever team that had the worst record in the WNBA in 2022 and 2023. Their on-court struggles put them in a position to assemble young talent, as they drafted former South Carolina star Aliyah Boston with the No. 1 pick in the 2022 draft, and, in this year’s draft, selected Ohio State standout Celeste Taylor, who will join another former Buckeye on Indiana’s roster, Kelsey Mitchell.
Clark had several people who came to the draft to support her, including her coach, Lisa Bluder and her Iowa teammates, Gabbie Marshall, Kate Martin and Jada Gyamfi. While Gyamfi and Marshall were just there to support their friend, Martin hoped her name would be called. The guard had to wait until the No. 18 pick in the second round but was eventually selected by the two-time defending champion Las Vegas Aces. After being drafted, Martin was emotional and said, “All I wanted was a shot, and I got it.”
There was also plenty of excitement in Indianapolis for Clark’s arrival. The Fever had a sold-out crowd of 17,000 people just to watch the draft. Additionally, within hours of Clark being Drafted, her jersey became Fanatics’ top-selling draft pick on any draft night in history, regardless of sport. Clark will continue her incredible journey when she makes her WNBA debut against the Connecticut Sun on May 14.