The Indiana Fever Guard, Caitlin Clark led her team to win four straight WNBA games after the team struggled a bit in the beginning of the season. The Indiana Fever are now 7-for-10 after defeating the Atlanta Dream with a 12-point margin.
Before clinching their game win against the Dream who are 6-for-8 in the league, the Fever faced Caitlin Clark’s rival team – the Chicago Sky – on June 16 to beat them with an eight-point margin. The intensity on the court, when these two teams met in their first two matches, intrigued the Caitlin Clark Rivalry narrative.
What does Clark have to say about these rivalry narratives?
The WNBA Rivalry That Sparks Spectators’ Interest
Who’s Caitlin Clark’s Rival? It started from college basketball and the No. 7 draft pick for the Chicago Sky, Angel Reese ignited this narrative due to her body language towards Clark.
Angel Reese played for the LSU Tigers in College and helped them win the NCAA tournament against the Iowa Hawkeyes in 2023. Clark was the guard for the Iowa Hawkeyes and an impressive player to watch against the double-double queen.
Clark and Reese’s rivalry elevated after the Fever’s second-game victory 91-83 against the Sky when the referee called a flagrant foul 1 on Clark. Reese made some statements at the end of the game that further proved how deep her rivalry is against Clark.
Caitlin Clark On Rivalry Narrative
The 22-year-old Fever guard downplayed how the NBA media intensified her relationship with Reese on the court. Clark respects Reese as her rival and acknowledges that it’s normal to have WNBA rivalry because it makes the game more interesting to watch. This is what Clark had to say about her rivalry in her postgame interview after defeating the Sky:
I think it’s just the emotion and the passion that we play with. People love to see that, and I think that’s maybe not something that was always appreciated in women’s sports. And it should be. I think that’s what makes it fun. We’re competitors, that’s the way the game should be. It’s going to get a little feisty, it’s gonna get physical, but at the end of the day both teams are just trying to win.
The Fever rookie guard acknowledged and respected the effort and performance Resse displays on the court as she reminisced on how they played against each other on the court saying this:
I think what she has done with her platform has been absolutely incredible, and she has an entire fanbase that has supported her and what she did at Maryland and then LSU. Obviously I’ve played her for a very long time, and she’s been a tremendous player. It’s been really fun getting to compete against. I think it’s been good for the game people just love seeing great matchups.
The Fever’s No. 1 draft pick, Clark goes up to number two for WNBA All-Star Game voting with A’ja Wilson as number one. As a guard, her performance gave the Indiana Fever four straight wins making them the fourth seed in the WNBA League.
Reese Is In For This Rivalry Narrative
In the Sky Forward, Reese is the catalyst of this rivalry movement. After claiming that the referee treats some players special on the court, it aroused anticipation of what the next battle between Clark and Reese would be like.
While Clark tries to downplay how the media intensified the rivalry between her and Reese. Reese lets the spectators know that she’s here to compete against the Fever’s No. 1 pick. According to CNN, here’s what Reese had to say about her rival relationship:
People are pulling up to games, we got celebrities coming to games, sold out arenas, just because of [the 2023 NCAA championship game]. And just looking at that, I’ll take that role. I’ll take the bad guy role, and I’ll continue to take that on and be that for my teammates. I’ll look back in 20 years and be like, ‘Yeah, the reason why we’re watching women’s basketball is not just because of one person. It’s because of me too,’ and I want y’all to realize that.
Angel Reese performs exceptionally as a rookie during her time for the Chicago Sky. This is her first season with the team and the 2024-25 WNBA season isn’t far gone. However, Reese broke records as a rookie which adds more steps to her being the No. 1 Rookie of the Year or even better the top WNBA All-Star.
Final Thoughts
Angel Resse and Caitlin Clark match as rivals. Also, these incredible players could bring more spectators to the WNBA games and elevate the league’s popularity. The Indiana Fever will face the Chicago Sky on Sunday 23rd of June.
Since these two teams met this season, the Fever have had the upper hand as they are 2-for-0 against the Sky. Thus, this makes their next meetup intriguing to watch. Rivalry is what keeps the sports industry more lively. Without it, there won’t be strong supporters.
About the Author
Wisdom is an email and brand copywriter with two years of content writing experience. He started Cloud Kitchen Concept to help startups and business owners elevate their brands from good to great. You can connect with him on LinkedIn and Instagram to enjoy cooked meals for your business’s growth.
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