Caitlin Clark’s performance over the course of the college basketball season caught the attention of the sports world, leading to massive ratings and attendance.
Seven-time Olympic gold medalist Katie Ledecky was among those who watched the former Iowa superstar’s rise to dominance. She told Fox News Digital ahead of the WNBA Draft she hoped to get to meet Clark soon.
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USA’s Katie Ledecky celebrates after victory in the final of the women’s 1500m freestyle swimming event during the World Aquatics Championships in Fukuoka on July 25, 2023. (MANAN VATSYAYANA/AFP via Getty Images)
“I have not met her. Hopefully at some point I’ll have the opportunity. She’s great,” Ledecky said. “I think the way she elevated women’s basketball over the past year, really the past couple of years, and how excited people are to watch her and watch her game, watch all the athletes – it’s incredibly exciting.”
Clark has an outside chance of making the USA women’s basketball team. She was invited to training camp.
“I don’t know if she’ll be on the Olympic team this summer. Hopefully we’ll have an opportunity to meet,” Ledecky added.
The Indiana Fever selected Clark with the No. 1 pick of the draft later Monday.
Clark heads into her WNBA rookie season with millions of fans already in tow after she mesmerized the sports world to the point where South Carolina legendary head coach Dawn Staley already dubbed her one of the greatest of all time in women’s basketball.
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Indiana Fever’s Caitlin Clark, middle, poses with general manager Lin Dunn, left, and head coach Christie Sides following a WNBA basketball news conference, Wednesday, April 17, 2024, in Indianapolis. (AP Photo/Darron Cummings)
Clark averaged 28.4 points over her four seasons with the Hawkeyes, including 31.6 points per game with 8.9 assists and 7.4 rebounds during her incredible 2023-2024 senior season.
She broke LSU men’s basketball legend Pete Maravich’s NCAA all-time scoring record this past season, among many other accolades, which included NCAA Tournament records on the way to a national championship run. Iowa ended up losing to undefeated South Carolina in the end.
Clark finished her career with a total of 3,951 points, including 548 three-pointers made on 1,452 attempts for a 37.7% mark from beyond the arc.
It may not have been the way Clark wanted to end her college career, especially after losing the national title game to LSU the season prior, but her contributions to women’s basketball over the past two seasons have been impossible to ignore.
Caitlin Clark talks to the media during the 2024 WNBA Draft on April 14, 2024 at the Brooklyn Academy of Music in Brooklyn, New York. (Catalina Fragoso/NBAE via Getty Images)
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The national title game drew 18.7 million viewers to ABC’s coverage with a peak of 24 million viewers during the game, per ESPN. That’s 89% higher than last season and 285% higher than the 2022 national championship game.
Fox News’ Scott Thompson contributed to this report.
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