Iowa Hawkeyes coach Lisa Bluder and No. 1 Caitlin Clark
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.
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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.
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Edited by Tejas Rathi
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