Caitlin Clark has been a pivotal figure in the growth of female basketball. Thus, when she was ruled out of the entire season, it not only hurt the Indiana Fever but also hindered the WNBA’s viewership. Sitting on the sidelines, Clark recently made an emotional confession post Fever’s playoff qualification. And as her team battles to stay alive in the league, former NBA star Olden Polynice had some interesting thoughts to share.
Clark joined the WNBA last year, and with that, the league experienced a major boom. Attendance improved, viewership skyrocketed, and, most importantly, cash flow increased. Unfortunately, despite all of this, Polynice had a lingering doubt about whether the league was doing enough to protect Clark.
Olden Polynice Lashes Out At WNBA Following Caitlin Clark Injury
Clark’s season-ending decision received key insights from ESPN. However, speaking on the matter, Polynice shared a fresh take. He pointed out that opponents fouled the 2024 Rookie of the Year throughout the one and a half seasons she played for Indiana. The former NBA star also criticized the WNBA and stated that they must be prompt enough to do a better job of protecting the 23-year-old. At least for their own sake.
“You don’t even take care of your own. You had the golden egg, and you still do, but yet you clown. Caitlin Clark is your golden egg,” Polynice said.
Continuing with his explanation further, Polynice stated how Clark debuted her 2024 season against two of the top defensive safeties back-to-back. And this, according to the ex-Clippers’ center, prevented the former Iowa star from kicking things off on a high note. Now then, while Polynice was concerned about the WNBA getting impacted by Clark’s absence, WNBA analyst Ice Young recently had a contradictory opinion to share.
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Ice Young Believes Caitlin Clark’s Absence Won’t Hamper WNBA Playoff Viewership
After the Indiana Fever qualified for the playoffs, fans surely felt a tinge of sadness. After all, if Clark had been around, things would have been pretty much different. And this is exactly what the ongoing debate has been. Critics have been doubting whether Clark’s absence will bring down the playoff ratings. In a recent episode of the ‘Hoops 360’ podcast, WNBA analyst Ice Young stated that the ratings will not fall drastically this year.
“I’ll play devil’s advocate. If you were tuning in last year for Caitlin Clark in the playoffs, you only saw two games. If you were going to tune in this year, what did we just talk about? They’d have to steal one game in order to get to the next round. You may only see two games,” said Young.
She further stated that a repeat of last year might happen again. With the Atlanta Dream being a stronger side, the Fever might crash out after the first round.