Indiana Fever guard Caitlin Clark is embracing the moment as she brings her super-sized star power from the collegiate game to the pro ranks.
Clark, the first pick in April¡¯s WNBA draft, shattered television ratings during her time as a fearsome sharpshooter at Iowa, and is now bringing more eyes to the WNBA ahead of her regular-season debut next week.
Clark is no stranger to the media circus after breaking the all-time NCAA scoring record in her final college season, and told reporters that she was keeping her focus on the court.
¡°It¡¯s just something you embrace and you enjoy and you navigate it,¡± Clark told reporters on Thursday.
¡°Maybe it¡¯ll be different or it¡¯ll be super loud or whatever it is. But, more than anything, I think it¡¯s just an exciting opportunity. So just embrace it and go about it like that more than feeling overwhelmed.¡±
Clark will get a taste of an ecstatic home crowd for the first time on Thursday, when the Fever host the Atlanta Dream in a preseason contest.
Indiana fans have embraced the six-foot (182 centimeter) guard, who received a standing ovation from the crowd at a Pacers NBA playoff game last month. Ticket sales for the Fever are more than 13 times higher on resale platform StubHub compared to last year.
Clark¡¯s teammate Aliyah Boston, last year¡¯s unanimous choice as rookie of the year, said the Fever had energy around them going into the season.
¡°Having Caitlin here is just great for this franchise, for the people of Indiana, just because of how many eyes that she draws,¡± Boston said.
¡°Having fans, having everyone come, everyone¡¯s just excited to watch you play. I mean, Caitlin has continued to open the doors for a lot of people just because of the attention that she draws.¡±
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