Caitlin Clark will be the first overall pick in the 2024 WNBA Draft if she decides to leave Iowa and turn pro. “If” is the key word there.
Clark has a decision to make and there is no timeline for an announcement either way.
Due to the pandemic-hindered 2020 season, the superstar point guard was granted an additional year of eligibility. She could play a fifth year at Iowa.
Hawkeyes head coach Lisa Bluder is going to help Clark weigh the pros and cons to both sides. One of the biggest pros to a return to Iowa is centered around her love of playing in front of consistently sold-out crowds at her home-state institution of higher learning.
Tuesday night was the perfect example!
Clark drained an epic buzzer-beater from the logo to beat Michigan State while popping off for 40 points. She proceeded to get emotional during her postgame interview and expressed gratitude for the fans and their support.
Could the atmosphere at Iowa get Caitlin Clark to return for year five?!
Prior to July 1, 2021, it was a no-brainer. Clark would not have been able to make any money while still in school and would have been able to get paid in the WNBA. Name, Image and Likeness changes that.
Clark could run it back with the Hawkeyes while making a good chunk of money through NIL deals with Gatorade, Nike and Buick, among others. There is even an argument to be made that she is actually more marketable on the collegiate level than as a professional. Who knows!
All of this goes to say that it would not be crazy for Clark to play one final season at Iowa. However, the Indiana Fever hold the No. 1 overall pick. They drafted Aliyah Boston last year and she won Rookie of the Year.
Boston, a big, and Clark, a guard, would be a dangerous one-two punch. Their games compliment each other well and history suggests that Indiana would be a phenomenal opportunity for success right away.
Regardless of what Clark decides to do, she is already a star. The folks in Iowa City might be sad to see her go, but they will support her either way!