First season of WNBA was 1997. A kid born in 1997 would be turning 27 this year. Caitlin Clark is 22. So Clark entered this world with 5 years of WNBA pipeline development that her predecessors didn’t have. Further, the extra revenue that CC & co. brought to the league will lead to a CBA that will probably convince more women with basketball talent to pursue professional ball. With salaries as low as they are right now, the smart move for even the most talented female basketball players is to take a college basketball scholarship to become an accountant. That’s going to change.

Caitlin Clark honestly probably does mark the ‘arrival’ of the WNBA. The systems & coaching is in place to yield very high quality women’s basketball. Which is no slight against the players of the past – they didn’t have the same support.