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ESPN Makes Decision on Caitlin Clark, Angel Reese WNBA Rookie of the Year Debate
By Chris Phelps,
17 hours ago
The 2024 WNBA Rookie of the Year race has come down to just two players: Indiana Fever guard Caitlin Clark and Chicago Sky forward Angel Reese.
Both stars have had remarkable rookie seasons, with each making the WNBA All-Star team. They have also constantly broken records during their first season as a pro. Clark became the first rookie ever to record a triple-double , and Reese broke Candace Parker's record for the most consecutive double-doubles in league history.
But only one of these standouts can win Rookie of the Year.
On Tuesday, ESPN listed Clark as the clear frontrunner to win the award, with Reese named as the "top challenger," as voted on by ESPN reporters Kevin Pelton, Alexa Philippou, and Michael Voepel.
Their main selling point for Clark winning the award is her playmaking. The former Iowa Hawkeyes star leads the WNBA in assists with 8.2 per game, broke the record for most assists in a season by a rookie and is on track to break the all-time single-season assists record. Clark has 247 assists on the season and needs 317 to pass Connecticut Sun star Alyssa Thomas for the record.
Sky forward Angel Reese and Fever guard Caitlin Clark
Reese's top attribute during 2024 has been her rebounding. She leads the WNBA in that category by a wide margin with 12.9 rebounds per game. The former LSU Tigers star is also on a three-game streak of 20 or more rebounds, the most all-time.
Clark and Reese have both led their teams to playoff position, with the Fever holding the seventh seed and the Sky with the eighth and final spot. Indiana has already surpassed their win count from last season with ten games remaining. Chicago did make the postseason in 2023 as the eighth seed but got stomped by the Las Vegas Aces in the first round.
Regardless of who wins the award, both Clark and Reese are everything fans hoped for and more coming out of college, and both are very deserving of Rookie of the Year honors.
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