The WNBA is again, and it is a blockbuster conflict on opening weekend.
Angel Reese’s Chicago Sky will tackle Caitlin Clark’s Indiana Fever on Saturday, however eagle-eyed followers have seen that the hype for the sport will not be as excessive as we might all suppose.
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The WNBA scheduled Clark and Reese’s respective groups towards one another on opening weekend for 2 causes: To pack an area and draw as many eyeballs to TVs.
And whereas the latter should still occur, the need for followers to attend the sport in individual is not as excessive as anticipated, with tickets nonetheless out there for as little as $35 on secondary-market websites.
That is much more stunning when contemplating that video games involving Clark are usually essentially the most in-demand video games of the WNBA season.
4 of the 5 costliest video games this season contain the Indiana Fever, with the one match beating Clark’s staff being the WNBA All-Star recreation, which is definite to contain the 23-year-old.
Though it must be famous that the venue internet hosting the Fever vs Sky is on the Gainbridge Discipline Enviornment, which has a capability of 18,000 and usually hosts the NBA’s Indiana Pacers, who’re within the Japanese Convention finals.
Nonetheless, large capability areas have by no means pushed down costs for Clark video games and contemplating the rivalry between her and Reese, the low ticket costs are much more stunning.
The pair have a historical past that dates again to 2019 after they first met within the Novice Athletic Union.
However issues actually began to warmth up in 2023, when March Insanity culminated in a recreation between Clark’s Iowa and Reese’s LSU.
Reese, who had transferred to Louisiana for her junior season, led the Tigers to their first nationwide title by defeating the Hawkeyes 102–85.
She posted 15 factors, ten rebounds and 5 assists within the remaining, and was named the event’s Most Excellent Participant.
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With a mean of 9.9 million viewers, the conflict between LSU and Iowa turned the most-watched girls’s faculty basketball recreation in historical past.
However what occurred between Reese and Clark on the finish of the sport quickly overshadowed the on-court motion
After main LSU to their first nationwide title, Reese hit Clark with John Cena’s ‘You may’t see me’ taunt, and likewise pointed to her ring finger to gesture her incoming nationwide championship ring.
It was broadly alleged on the time that Clark had made the identical gesture to the other staff earlier within the event, in Iowa’s Elite Eight recreation towards Louisiana State.
Each have change into even larger stars since their notorious bout, with Clark happening to star on the quilt of TIME Journal whereas Reese herself was on the quilt of Vogue.
Though the very last thing the WNBA would need is empty seats when their two largest names conflict on opening weekend.
Particularly after they need to break much more data after an unprecedented WNBA season in 2024, which noticed a $136 million uptick for the league.
A 2024 research confirmed the WNBA was capable of ship $136 million in sponsor media worth throughout the 2024 common season, they usually’ll need to earn much more this 12 months.
It might be a shock if the sector wasn’t full by the point the sport tip-offs, and there is no doubt the WNBA entrance workplace can be conserving a detailed eye on proceedings.