Caitlin Clark Edge vs Paige Bueckers Unlocks Eye-Opening Habits Consuming the WNBA – Insider

There’s no question that Caitlin Clark is the sun the WNBA orbits around. Clark’s popularity was sky high even when she was playing for Iowa. The league would have heaved a sigh of relief that she declined that humongous $15 million offer from Big3. The WNBA is giving her peanuts in comparison. Fortunately for them, Clark does not care about the money as much as she does about the game of basketball. The WNBA provided her with a better avenue to solidify her legacy, but is the league looking beyond Clark?

So far, the top five most-watched games in WNBA history have involved Clark. She is termed as the “single biggest needle mover since Michael Jordan,” according to former Nike Basketball Brand Marketing Director, Jordan Rogers. Clark is not only bringing in the crowd, but filling the coffers too. $52.3M for Iowa. $36M for Indianapolis. And a staggering 26% of the WNBA’s 2024 pie, all because of one game-changer. However, as the league grows further, this dependency might cost the league dearly, according to this analyst. 

Robin Lundberg said on his YouTube Channel, “Clark numbers up here, you have Fever numbers here, you have the rest of the league here, but the rest of the league is higher than it was before Caitlin Clark arrived. And that’s a good thing. But the league will be healthier when it’s less reliant on Caitlin Clark.”

The 2025 All-Star Game is the best example to explain Lundberg’s point. Around 2.2 million people watched the 2025 WNBA All-Star Game on television and streaming services. That is down from a with-Clark 2024 All-Star Game, which had 3.44 million viewers but up 153% from the 2023 All-Star game. That is a striking sign that one player is driving millions to the league, and diversification is necessary. 

Mandatory Credits: Grace Hollars/IndyStar / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Sue Bird brought up an interesting conversation when it comes to moving away from this Caitlin Clark-centric model. She was shocked that Paige Bueckers is not as popular as Clark is, despite being the standout rookie of 2025. The same position Clark had.  “I think, specific to Paige, you might argue her popularity, and the people that are fans of her, has been underrated. Which shocks me!” Bird said on her podcast. 

It’s not only about the organic fanfare that both Clark and Bueckers bring. Bird argued that Bueckers should be covered a lot more than she currently is. “I think people forgot how popular and how engaging Paige is, and how people are drawn to her. She should be followed and covered in a way that is similar to what we saw with Caitlin, because that’s how popular she is,” She said.

Bueckers is the ideal candidate to be a superstar, along with Caitlin, and a possible long-term rival. Bueckers was seen on national TV only 23 times in her rookie season, as compared to Clark’s 36 in her rookie year. That is despite the boom and the expanded 175-game National TV schedule. With the numbers likely to drop in 2025, Bueckers could earn that attention next season.

2025 Was a Trailer of a WNBA Without Caitlin Clark

It has come to a point that Caitlin Clark feels the responsibility to show up for the ratings and the fans. “So how does [that ratings dip] impact your patience? Everybody knows that when you play, [the ratings] changes… How are you managing that so it doesn’t impact your patience?” Bird asked Caitlin Clark when she was a guest on her podcast.

“It has definitely been hard. I’m gonna go to every road game, no matter what. Whether I’m playing or not. And it’s hard, because obviously I do feel this responsibility of being out there and playing,” Clark responded. Clark has travelled to every away game bar one despite her nagging injuries. It is a move that has been criticised in light of her recovery timeline, but even the franchise, WNBA, and Clark know it will negatively affect the business side of things. 

However, even with Clark signing autographs and sitting on the sidelines, it is nowhere near enough to maintain the 2024 hype. Like Lundberg said, more is lacking this year. “The easiest explanation for that is Caitlin Clark hasn’t been on the floor. And there’s only so much juice you can squeeze from that with her not actually playing.” 

Aug 1, 2025; Dallas, Texas, USA; Indiana Fever guard Caitlin Clark (22) during the game between the Dallas Wings and the Indiana Fever at the American Airlines Center. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-Imagn Images

There is one positive from this season that has seen Clark rarely on the court. Through 56 nationally televised games, the WNBA was averaging 794,000 viewers, a 21% jump from 2024’s full-season average, per Nielsen data. Fever games did dominate, pulling 1.26 million viewers on average, but non-Fever broadcasts were up 37% from last year, averaging 549,000 viewers across 37 games. How that translates to full-season data is yet to be seen, but the numbers will hold more importance considering how the season has gone. 

The WNBA has missed Clark, and a dip is expected. The Fever’s home attendance has already gone from 17,035 to 16,665, which is not a huge drop, but the graph should not go down after just one year of success. The full season numbers will give us more idea as to whether the league is moving towards non-Caitlin Clark superstars or Clark remains the sole dominator. 

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