More Than Talent

The bags of gas justifiably expelled on behalf of Iowa hoopster extraordinaire Caitlin Clark won’t be enhanced by a mid-Atlantic typist, except to remind folks that we’re amid a relatively rare occurrence in which performance graduates to phenomenon and might be, ya know, worth checking out if you have a few minutes. 

Clark winds down her senior season (maybe – more on that in a minute) in a joyful assault on various record books as she and her team fill arenas and barnstorm through the Big Ten. Fans travel hundreds of miles and wait in long lines and pay inflated prices to watch her hit shots from absurd distances and pass smartly to teammates and orchestrate entire games. Clark leads the nation in both scoring (32.2 ppg) and assists (8.2 apg) as of this writing and will soon become the all-time points leader in NCAA women’s history. Iowa is top-five and leads the nation in scoring (92.7 ppg), as well, but her and the Hawkeyes’ impact extend beyond statistics into less explicable realms. 

Iowa coach Lisa Bluder, in a piece by ESPN’s Adam Rittenberg, said that when the Hawkeyes pull up to a road hotel or arena and fans first glimpse Clark, “It’s like the ‘Home Alone’ face. Like ‘Oh my gosh, it’s Caitlin Clark.’ It’s fun to see, it really is.” The average ticket price for Iowa road games, Rittenberg reported, is $107.75 and attendance is almost 11,000 per game, more than double the average for Big Ten roadies. Ticket sales for a Hawkeyes road game at Purdue were $106,000; the regular take is less than $22,000. At Northwestern, single tickets fetched $199, while seats in the premium area went for $529. Iowa and Virginia Tech drew 15,000 for a November game in Charlotte, N.C., in which Clark went for 44 points in an 80-76 Hawkeyes win. Hokies coach Kenny Brooks said afterward, “I’ve been in this arena before when Steph Curry was in here and it wasn’t this loud.” 

This sort of spectacle is usually reserved for musicians and entertainers – think Taylor Swift and Beyonce and “Beatlemania” – and occasionally shows up in sports. The closest contemporary might be Messi-to-MLS/Miami. Shohei Ohtani flirts with that sort of status (in Japan, for sure), particularly when he does double duty. Before that, peak Tiger Woods. Maybe the Jordan-Pippen-Rodman Bulls and Muhammad Ali in his elder statesman phase. Perhaps the Gretzky-Messier Edmonton Oilers in Canada and other hockey-manic outposts. I might be forgetting or unaware of a couple others. 

It’s something beyond excellence and accomplishment. Even when the Patriots were winning Super Bowls or the Yankees winning World Series, few people went all aflutter and opened their wallets at the sight of Derek Jeter or Tom Brady. There's an appealing folk hero element to the narrative -- Midwestern girl who mythically emerged from the cornfields and began bombing 3-pointers and showing up the city kids. Even though the truth is she's from Des Moines (pop. 208,000), played AAU ball for a respected program and was a well-regarded recruit. Certainly, no one forecast that she would be an all-timer, but why let the facts get in the way of a good story. By all accounts, Clark recognizes her appeal and reach, even if she can’t explain it herself. She embraces her position as role model and is as accommodating as time permits – a few autographs and photos here and there, then on to the next game, practice, bus ride, class, obligation. 

Keep a good thought for Iowa schoolteachers, who in several years will likely navigate classrooms chock full of Caitlins. Iowa has a handful of regular season games remaining, then the Big Ten and NCAA tournaments. Clark and the Hawkeyes will be massive draws wherever they land. After that, her path is unclear. She has one more year of eligibility, due to the NCAA waiver for COVID, and has said she won’t decide whether to return or turn pro until the season concludes. She said she views it like recruiting and intends to follow her gut. No matter where her gut pushes her, she’s worth tagging along for the ride.