Is Caitlin Clark the WNBA’s Taylor Swift? Fever coach blasts ‘clickbait’ around star guard originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
In only 10 days’ time, the WNBA’s collective bargaining agreement expires — and there seems to be little momentum propelling the league and the WNBPA toward a new deal that would see the players secure historic financial gains amid an explosion in the popularity of women’s professional basketball.
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Caitlin Clark is one reason — some would say the biggest reason — for the WNBA’s unprecedented growth. The Indiana Fever guard was already a basketball celebrity before she debuted in the WNBA last year, and her fame only increased as she successfully translated her high-octane playing style to the pros.
But injuries disrupted Clark’s 2025 season, leaving her unable to build on her Rookie of the Year campaign. Even as Clark was sidelined for all but 13 games, the narratives and media cycles built on the 23-year-old’s back continued to churn.
MORE: Fever’s Caitlin Clark is expected to be better than ever in 2026
The ceaseless online chatter even drew Clark into the ongoing CBA stalemate. Last month, Minnesota Lynx superstar Napheesa Lynx claimed that commissioner Cathy Engelbert told her Clark “wouldn’t make anything” without the platform the WNBA gives her. Engelbert denied making the comments; Clark all but confirmed she made them at Fever exit interviews earlier this month.
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Clark’s seeming ubiquity in the media has compelled Fever head coach Stephanie White to compare her star point guard to Taylor Swift: the star to end all stars, the most popular singer-songwriter on the planet, one of Clark’s idols.
“It literally is like Taylor Swift 2.0, and because of that, her name gets thrown into a lot of conversations that have absolutely nothing to do with her, or her interests, and or our team or sport, or whatever,” White told the Indianapolis Star.
Clark’s popularity and renown mean she sparks attention and interest when she does anything. White mentioned Clark in the same breath as other transformative athletes — LeBron James, Tiger Woods and Serena Williams — while expressing a hope that Clark can continue to display the grace and maturity that have already made her the Fever’s franchise player.
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“I wish that Caitlin was able to just live her life however,” White said. “But with the things that she’s accomplished, there’s a lot of responsibility and a lot of attention that comes, because she’s elite at what she does.”
