CAITLIN CLARK has been hailed as the Michael Jordan of the WNBA by Mike Breen.
The ESPN broadcaster believes the rookie phenomenon has helped the league’s viewership grow massively.
The WNBA has hit the one million viewer mark for the 2024 season, which has never been reached before.
Clark, 22, has starred in her rookie campaign for the Indiana Fever, which led to a glittering comparison.
Breen insisted that the star guard’s impact on the WNBA is similar to that of Jordan’s to the NBA.
He made the claim while on commentary during the New York Knicks’ defeat to the Indiana Pacers.
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He said: “During the Summer when the Indiana Fever played here with Caitlin Clark, the building was packed every game
“The TV ratings of the Fever this Summer for the local telecast were higher than a lot of the Pacers game because of Caitlin Clark.
“She’s doing rating-wise for the WNBA what Michael Jordan, Lebron James, and Steph Curry have been doing for the NBA.”
However, Clark is currently considering a huge offer that could come as a massive blow to the WNBA.
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She has been linked with a switch to a new league that will start in 2025.
The new Unrivaled 3×3 tournament is tentatively slated to begin on January 17 in Miami, Florida.
Caitlin Clark fever
CAITLIN Clark’s impact was already felt by the WNBA even before she was drafted.
The Iowa college superstar went No. 1 overall to the Indiana Fever in a surprise to absolutely nobody.
The Indiana Fever had 36 of their 40 games in the 2024 season scheduled for national TV – up from 22 last year.
Teams also moved their games against the Fever to bigger arenas to cater for the extra ticket demand.
Clark helped the NCAA draw 18.9 million viewers for the women’s championship game, more than the 14.8 million who watched the men’s decider.
She has also already signed a deal with Nike worth upwards of $20 million.
The league has already signed the likes of Breanna Stewart and Paige Bueckers.
If Clark also joins the league then she would be able to continue her rivalry with Angel Reese.
She has remained tight-lipped on the possibility of her switching away from the WNBA.
She said: “We’ll see. I don’t know.
“Just taking it as it goes, and see if I want to play eventually.”
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