Plummeting WNBA ratings don’t tell full story about Caitlin Clark games

Caitlin Clark's continued absence from the court is starting to show in a lot of ways — perhaps most significantly, in a sharp decline in WNBA viewership since she was sidelined with a quadriceps injury in late May. The latest reports state nationally-televised WNBA viewership is down 55% and the Fever's nationally televised games are down 53%. Those numbers are big, but there's little more to it than what's been initially reported.

Before she was pulled out of the game for a minimum of two weeks on May 26, Clark had played in four games for the Fever. She's since missed five, and there's no clear indication of when she will return. And honestly, that's a good thing: the last thing anyone should want is for Clark to return too soon, potentially setting herself up for another injury that could be worse.

The Fever are set to be featured in 41 nationally televised games this season, a first for any team in league history. Clark's first four games were shown on ABC, NBA TV, Prime Video, and CBS, respectively. Since then, the team's games have aired nationally on NBA TV, ION, NBA TV, and CBS. The team's fifth game against the Dream was not broadcast nationally, and all the games are also available on WNBA League Pass.

The decline in WNBA ratings points to a few key things

First and foremost, the fact that enthusiasm for one player can lead to a steep decline in viewership is something that is unprecedented in the WNBA. But being unprecedented doesn't necessarily mean it's a positive (or negative) thing; it just means it hasn't happened before.

To a degree, for so much attention to suddenly fall off because Clark isn't playing on the floor suggests that many so-called fans aren't really in it for the game — they're just watching for one player. And while that's not inherently terrible, it is a self-imposed limitation that's a bit confusing. It's difficult to understand why "fans" of women's basketball would intentionally opt out of experiencing as much of the league as possible, whether or not their favorite player is out there on the court.

At the very least, it's what Clark herself would want and likely expects. Clark is always one to play to the crowd, something she's continued to do even as she's been sidelined. In fact, it only takes showing up at one home game at Gainbridge to realize the power she really has over the crowd — even when she isn't participating, all Clark has to do is stand up and indicate for fans to get on their feet for them to do it.

WNBA fans who are opting out of watching games because Clark isn't on the floor are missing out — most notably on seeing the other stars of the same team she plays on. Basketball is a team sport, and fandoms are team-oriented. Clark can be your favorite player, but hopefully that extends to enjoying the Fever with or without her, or even finding another team that you like (after all, the games she's missed have seen the Fever go up against the Mystics, Sun, Sky, and Dream — all teams with rosters packed with talent and personality).

As for those ratings, there's little doubt they'll improve once Clark is back. Perhaps by then, more fans will have engaged with the sport and league they claim to love.