WNBA recognizes Caitlin Clark ahead of Angel Reese after record-setting rookie seasons

Caitlin Clark has officially been named WNBA Rookie of the Year and beaten Angel Reese to the award following a close battle this season.

Clark was already voted unanimously as the Associated Press WNBA Rookie of the Year and now has an official league honor to cap off a record-breaking season. Clark averaged 19.2 points, 8.4 assists, and 5.7 rebounds per game in the regular season, and helped the Indiana Fever reach the playoffs for the first time since 2016.

The Fever ended up losing in the first round of the WNBA Playoffs after being swept by the Connecticut Sun , but it failed to take away from Clark's rookie year. The 22-year-old was even a candidate for WNBA MVP but finished fourth in the AP voting as Las Vegas Aces star A'Ja Wilson won the award for the third time.

Clark also earned the Peak Performer Award after leading the league in assists and set a new league record after surpassing Connecticut forward Alyssa Thomas. Clark held off Chicago Sky rookie Reese to win the award, with many believing that the latter was ahead in the race until the second half of the season.

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Reese also set several records during her rookie season, including the most double-doubles by a rookie (26), and the most offensive rebounds in a single season (172). Reese also became then first player with three consecutive 20+ rebound games in WNBA history.

The Fever star continued to break records until her final regular-season game, where she scored 35 points and passed Seimone Augustus for the rookie scoring record. That game averaged 2.5 million viewers on cable television, setting a new WNBA record.

"Caitlin is special. Everybody knows that," Fever head coach Christie Sides said of Clark. "She’s been special. She came into the best league in the world, the best women’s basketball league in the world.

"She found her footing. She’s continued to get better. She’s put herself in a position to be called one of the best players in this league. That’s incredible for a rookie."

Clark's achievement has been slightly overshadowed after several WNBA players including Reese spoke out about receiving online abuse this season. Reese is looking to inspire change, and Clark said during her final press conference of the 2024 WNBA season that the people sending those messages are not proper fans.

"It's definitely upsetting. Nobody in our league should be facing any sort of racism, hurtful, disrespectful, hateful comments and threats," Clark said on Friday. "Those aren't fans. Those are trolls and it's a real disservice to the people in our league, the organization, the WNBA."

Clark is hoping that the negativity will soon be replaced by positivity after admitting the league has so much to offer to players and fans. "For me, that's why I became a fan of this league is these people were my idols. I grew up wanting to be like them," Clark added. "So, I think continuing to uplift and represent this league in a positive way is the best thing that we can do."