Caitlin Clark wins WNBA Rookie of the Year with 66 of 67 votes, Angel Reese gets 1

Having etched her name across the record book during the 2024 WNBA season, Caitlin Clark has been named the league’s Rookie of the Year, receiving 66 of 67 total votes, the WNBA announced Thursday. Chicago Sky forward Angel Reese received one vote from the national panel of sportswriters and broadcasters.

Clark and Reese were also named to the 2024 All-Rookie Team on Thursday, along with Los Angeles Sparks forward Rickea Jackson, Chicago Sky center Kamilla Cardoso and New York Liberty forward Leonie Fiebich.

 

That Clark won the Rookie of the Year award came as little surprise considering how prolific her debut season was.

Clark broke both the WNBA’s single-season and single-game assist records. She scored the most points by a rookie ever, and the most points by a point guard ever. She became the first rookie to record two triple-doubles and the first Fever player ever to record a triple-double.

Those are just some of her many accomplishments among averaging 19.2 points and 8.4 assists per game — numbers that were even better in the second half of the season — and led the Fever to their first postseason appearance since 2016. Indiana also improved its win total by seven in 2024.

“I am incredibly honored to be named Rookie of the Year, but more than that, I am grateful to everyone that supported me throughout this past season — my family and friends, my teammates, the Fever organization and everyone that cheered us on all season,” Clark said in a statement Thursday. “I am so proud of what we accomplished and so excited for what the future holds.”

Clark, the No. 1 pick in the 2024 WNBA Draft, entered the league as the most-anticipated rookie in league history. She flourished at Iowa for four seasons, leading the Hawkeyes to two Final Fours and setting the women’s NCAA Division I and major college women’s basketball scoring records.

The spectacle around Clark followed her to the professional ranks. While Clark dazzled fans and tormented opponents, she also played an instrumental role in a season of explosive growth for the WNBA. Six different league television partners set viewership records this year for its highest viewed WNBA game, and all six included the Fever.

Attendance in Indianapolis hit a record high, with an average of 17,036 fans packing Gainbridge Fieldhouse for home games. Indiana led the league in attendance for the first time in WNBA history.

Thursday’s news, however, is not a reflection of the off-court Clark Effect, but her successes between the court’s four lines.

“She’s been special,” Indiana coach Christie Sides said ahead of the playoffs. “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 position to be called one of the best players in the league. That’s incredible for a rookie.”

For the first half of the season, the Rookie of the Year race seemed as if it would be among the tightest ever. Through the first two months of the season, Reese helped the Sky remain in playoff contention. She had 14 double-doubles in 20 games and broke Candace Parker’s consecutive double-double streak.

Reese, like Clark, earned All-Star honors and was awarded WNBA Rookie of the Month in June. She set the league’s single-season total rebound record (446) and recorded the highest per-game rebound average in WNBA history (13.1).

The No. 7 draft pick, Reese would have become only the third player taken after No. 6 in the WNBA Draft to win Rookie of the Year. But her second half proved different than her first. Chicago slumped and Reese eventually was ruled out for the rest of the season on Sept. 8 with a wrist injury. The Sky missed the postseason.

During the season Clark and Reese downplayed the importance of the race.

“I’m sure (Angel) would give you the same exact answer—I’m sure she has given you the same exact answer,” Clark said in late August. “So for us, everybody can write that, but our focus is on winning basketball games. It’s as simple as that.”

Said Reese: “We don’t either care about Rookie of the Year. I think you guys have made it a big thing. We haven’t. We both want to win. We’ve been wanting to win, and that’s what we’ve done in our collegiate career.”

Clark became the third consecutive No. 1 pick to win top rookie honors.

“I know there’s a lot of room for me to continue to improve,” Clark said after the Fever were knocked out of the playoffs by the Connecticut Sun. “I feel like I had a solid year, but for me, the fun part is I feel like I’m just scratching the surface.”

Evaluating the All-Rookie Team

Despite Los Angeles failing to make the postseason, Jackson was productive throughout the year. She was efficient, averaging 13.4 points, 3.9 rebounds and 1.5 assists per game while shooting 45.6 percent from the field and nearly 35 percent from 3-point range. She also became the first WNBA rookie, and sixth WNBA player ever, with a game of at least 25 points, three three-pointers and three blocks.

Cardoso, the No. 3 pick in April’s draft, missed the start of the season due to injury. But upon her return in early June, she also made an instant impact. Cardoso led all rookies in field goal percentage (52.1 percent) and averaged 9.8 points, 7.9 rebounds and 1.4 blocks per game. On June 23 against Indiana, Cardoso and Reese became the first rookie duo in league history since 1998 to record double-doubles over multiple games in the same season. They later also became the first rookie teammates since 2010 to record more than 10 rebounds in the same game.

Fiebich elected to join the Liberty this season, having most recently been the MVP of the professional league in Spain. The 24-year-old German averaged 6.7 points, 3 rebounds and 1.8 assists per game while shooting 47.8 percent from the field and 43.3 percent from deep. During the regular season, she recorded the second-highest plus-minus by a rookie in WNBA history. She has continued to make a key impact this playoffs, where, now in the starting lineup full-time, she has led the Liberty in plus-minus in three of their first four postseason games.

Collier wins DPOY award

From the beginning of the regular season until its conclusion, the Minnesota Lynx had one of the WNBA’s top defenses. And that defense now boasts the league’s top defender after Napheesa Collier won the 2024 WNBA Defensive Player of the Year Award, the league announced Sunday.

Collier received 36 of the 67 votes from a national panel of sportswriters and broadcasters. Las Vegas Aces forward A’ja Wilson finished in second (26 votes).

The Lynx finished the year first in opponent field goal percentage (41), first in opponent 3-point percentage (30.1), first in opponent assist rate (18.6), and a close second in defensive rating (94.8). Collier’s versatility was key to all their success as an anchor of Minnesota’s defense.

Often Collier was tasked with guarding an opponent’s top frontcourt players. At other moments, she rotated over to provide crucial help.  She was especially impactful against top competition as the Lynx went 7-4 against the other top-four playoff seeds, including Minnesota’s Commissioner’s Cup victory.

Collier finished second in the WNBA in steals per game (1.9) and eighth in blocks (1.4 per game). According to Synergy Sports, opponents shot only 34.3 percent against her.

“I’m so proud of Phee’s defensive work in 2024. Her commitment to all aspects of our defense — deflections, denials, steals, blocks, rebounds — anchored one of the top defensive teams in the league and led to her best season yet as a pro,” Lynx coach Cheryl Reeve told the AP.

Minnesota finished second in the WNBA standings and swept the Phoenix Mercury in the first round of the playoffs. The Lynx, winners of four WNBA titles, will be looking to win their fifth this postseason. If they do, they would move into first place for titles won by an active WNBA franchise, breaking a tie with the Seattle Storm.

Tipoff for Game 3 of their semifinal series against the third-seeded Sun is set for 7:30 p.m. ET on Friday. The series is tied 1-1.