Indiana Fever star Caitlin Clark saved women’s professional basketball in America.
The WNBA hit record highs in viewers and attendance during Clark’s first month in the league.
And Donald Trump had one message for Caitlin Clark that left her haters fuming.
The National Basketball Association (NBA) is the second most popular professional sport in the United States.
The NBA attracts millions of viewers for its regular season games, playoffs, and the finals.
During the 2023/24 season, an average of 1.56 million viewers tuned in to watch NBA regular season games on ABC, ESPN, and TNT.
In the 2021/22 finals, an average of 12.6 million viewers tuned in to each game of the championship series.
Fans also enjoy attending the game in person.
NBA arenas are filled to an average of 96% capacity for each regular season game.
The NBA also has a large online presence, with over 210 million followers across social media platforms.
The league’s 30 franchises recorded a total revenue of $11.34 billion for the 2023/24 season.
This is an increase of over $700 million from the previous year.
Even though men’s professional basketball is widely popular, the same can’t be said for women’s basketball.
The WNBA was founded in 1996.
And after nearly 30 years of operation, the WNBA has yet to make a profit.
But the WNBA has been experiencing a surge in popularity over the past year thanks to rookie superstar Caitlin Clark.
Caitlin Clark was the number one pick in the WNBA draft by the Indiana Fever.
She sold more jerseys on the first day than any player in any sport.
And the numbers show the massive impact she’s making on the WNBA.
In fact, the WNBA had its highest attendance in 22 years.
2.3 million fans attended games in 2024, a 48% increase from the previous season.
More than half of all WNBA games were sellouts, a 156% increase from last year.
Clark’s popularity also led to an all-time record in viewership for the WNBA.
The WNBA had more than 54 million unique viewers across ABC, CBS, ESPN, ESPN2, ION, and NBA TV.
Caitlin Clark is saving women’s professional basketball, but she still doesn’t get respect from other players in the league.
In her first season, she faced everything from trash talk to physical assaults.
But she recently got some praise and respect from an unexpected place.
During a surprise visit to former NFL coach Bill Belichick’s podcast on Monday, former President Donald Trump said he enjoys watching Clark play because “she’s incredible.”
“She’s incredible, by the way,” Trump said. “I watch, too – I think she’s incredible.”
“The shot, I watch this shot go in, it’s like, couldn’t she shoot that way in the NBA?” Trump said.
“Give her the ball,” he continued, before adding that “she’s unbelievable.”
“It’s a phenomenon,” he added. “It’s something that is taking place, and it’s unusual.”
Clark has mostly avoided talking about politics during her time in the spotlight.
But she is a fan of Taylor Swift.
“I’m fired up!” she posted on social media in reference to the Taylor Swift Eras tour in Indianapolis.
She also liked Swift’s post where she endorsed Kamala Harris.
But to her credit, Clark keeps her eyes focused on the game and improving her skills.
