On Saturday, Jul. 19, Team Collier (captained by Minnesota Lynx star Napheesa Collier) beat Team Clark (captained by injured Indiana Fever star Caitlin Clark) 151-131 in the WNBA All-Star Game. This marked the halfway point in what has been an eventful summer in the WNBA.
Clark, arguably the league’s biggest star, has been on and off the court all season with injuries. This has led to inconsistent play from her team and inconsistent performance from the league.
For the Fever, the team’s record has suffered in Clark’s absence.. At the time of writing, with their leader on the court, the team has an 8-5 record, with a 5-7 record without her. They currently find themselves 3rd in the East and 6th overall. Also, while on the court, Clark has been inconsistent for Indiana, shooting far worse from the three-point line in away games than at home. To go far in the postseason, they will need a healthy, consistent second half of the season from their star.
For the league, no Clark means worse ratings. After it was announced that she wouldn’t be playing during All-Star weekend, ticket prices fell over 40%. Clark is a big pull of fans, so the league needs her to stay healthy.
Even without Clark on the court, the league has still had plenty of excitement. First overall draft pick Paige Bueckers of the Dallas Wings drew the second most ever viewers on Ion Television for a non-Fever game in her debut. However, her Wings still hold the second worst record in the WNBA at 7-17.
The WNBA’s newest team, the Golden State Valkyries have exceeded many expectations. After starting this year’s debut season off 2-5, they have managed to make it to 10-12. So far, they have exceeded expectations for a new expansion team. Currently at the 9th seed overall, they are on the fringe of making the playoffs in their first year.
Another interesting storyline is the Connecticut Sun, who have the worst record in the league. Last season, they were the third seed going into the playoffs. Then, after being one win away from the finals, they lost their entire starting lineup in trades and free agency. This has led to a sharp fall to the bottom for a team that had a good chance to win it all last year.
The Atlanta Dream have had a good season so far, currently holding the 2nd seed in the East and the 5th seed overall. In the offseason, they added two big names in free agency: center Brittney Griner and forward Brionna Jones. Neither has scored significantly for Atlanta (they are the Dream’s 5th and 3rd leading scorers respectively), but both provide value to the team. All-Star starter Allisha Gray and 2022 Rookie of the Year Rhyne Howard currently lead the team to improvement from last year’s bottom seeding in the playoffs.
With a revamped roster and a first-year head coach, the Dream can only look to improve on last year’s playoff performance, where they got swept in the first round by the New York Liberty. In a season marked by surprises, they could exceed expectations going forward.
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