Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese entered the WNBA to plenty of fanfare, but the two have largely lived up to expectations.
While neither the Fever nor the Sky has a winning record, Clark and Reese have stuffed the stat sheet. Clark has continued to make her signature deep 3-point shots while demonstrating high-level passing as she refines her skills as a point guard.
Meanwhile, Reese is proving that her slipping to No. 7 in the WNBA Draft was a mistake. She has been a top-tier rebounder and set a record for consecutive double-doubles by a rookie, a streak that now sits at eight.
Indeed, Clark and Reese have exciting basketball fans everywhere, especially given the budding rivalry between their respective fan bases.
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Magic Johnson's notable Caitlin Clark vs. Angel Reese comparison
For those thinking this has a familiar feeling, you're not alone. Magic Johnson compared the impact that the two are having on the WNBA to what he and Larry Bird did for the NBA in the 1980s.
"When I think about Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese’s impact on the game, they remind me a lot of Larry Bird and me," Johnson wrote on X (formerly Twitter). "Our first meeting, Indiana State vs. Michigan State, in the NCAA Championship set the all-time viewership record for men’s basketball. Caitlin and Angel’s 2023 NCAA Championship matchup and their 2024 Elite Eight games were the highest viewership records at the time."
Johnson certainly has a point. Clark and Reese's second matchup — a 91-83 Fever win — drew 2.25 million viewers, the most for a WNBA team in 23 years. Six networks have broken records for WNBA viewership this year, and viewer interest continues to rise as the rivalry between Clark and Reese grows.
In Johnson's mind, that's exactly what he and Bird provided the NBA upon their arrival in the late 1970s. The result was an economic boon for the league; he believes the WNBA is about to be in a similar spot.
MORE: Caitlin Clark sets franchise assist record in loss vs. Sky
"Larry and I heightened the NBA’s overall popularity," Johnson posted. "The Lakers and Celtics sold out arenas throughout the league and increased television viewership exponentially. The higher viewership numbers led to the NBA signing significantly larger TV contracts which then led to higher salaries for the players.
"Caitlin and Angel are now doing the same thing, selling out arenas and increasing the viewership. They have taken women’s basketball by storm and with expiring TV deals on the horizon, the WNBA is now in a position to negotiate higher TV contracts and increase salaries for all of the talented players."
It would be nice for players to see Johnson's prognostication come true. The highest salary league-wide is currently a respectable $241,984, per Spotrac.com. Players have still had to supplement that income by playing overseas during the WNBA offseason, but perhaps that could change with sizable growth in the TV deal.
Johnson is a billionaire, so his comparison of Clark vs. Reese to Magic vs. Bird should inspire hope among WNBA owners and players alike.
And if Clark vs. Reese can be as exciting on the court as Magic vs. Bird was, then fans should be happy with the direction of the WNBA as well.