INDIANAPOLIS — Indiana Fever rookie Caitlin Clark already is among the WNBA’s most recognizable gamers.
So when she made her first highway journey final week, the league’s first general draft decide needed to adapt. As a substitute of loading her bag immediately onto a aircraft and boarding, Clark discovered herself traversing the identical strains and waits as everybody else at a Dallas airport — similar to many of the league’s gamers.
It is a problem she would not thoughts avoiding on future journeys, and now league commissioner Cathy Engelbert is engaged on an answer.
In the future after Engelbert advised a bunch of sports activities editors that she’s looking for common constitution flights for all 12 WNBA groups, Clark and her new teammates embraced the transfer.
“I feel you simply have to concentrate on the place you might be,” Clark mentioned after Wednesday’s apply. “You journey with safety, which is good. It is simply completely different from faculty the place you place your bag on the aircraft, hop on the aircraft and then you definately’re off. However like [here] you are ready at baggage declare, you have to undergo the conventional safety with everyone else. For me, it was my first time doing it. It wasn’t horrible. I simply went about my enterprise and stored my head down.”
Clark went on to attain 21 factors in her professional debut, a 79-76 loss.
However her star energy has solely fueled a debate that took heart stage final season when Phoenix Mercury star Brittney Griner was confronted by a person who began asking questions as she walked via an airport. The incident turned so heated that the person was tackled and legislation enforcement was known as.
League officers known as the person’s actions “inappropriate” and “unlucky.”
It spurred a leaguewide debate over participant security, with some veteran stars asking that league officers do extra, together with discovering constitution flights. And now, with one of the vital heralded rookie lessons coming into the league, Engelbert desires to take motion even when she would not have an outlined timetable for when it may occur.
Fever coach Christie Sides additionally remembered sleeping in an airport whereas working with the Chicago Sky due to a number of delays earlier than the flight was ultimately canceled. She mentioned the group took a 6 a.m. flight and performed later that night time.
For these causes, constitution flights cannot begin quickly sufficient for individuals who have been across the league for years — or for Clark, who has been driving WNBA ticket gross sales upward after driving a considerable improve in tv rankings over the previous two seasons.
“I am grateful at no matter level that occurs, that might be nice for us. It should make restoration simpler, it can make journey simpler,” Clark mentioned. “It simply makes life quite a bit simpler for lots of people, but in addition it is simply one thing lots of people have deserved for years and years.”
Along with the WNBA’s improved journey lodging, Clark and the Fever will get pleasure from elevated display screen time for the upcoming season.
Twelve tv markets will help in broadcasting 17 of Indiana’s video games free of charge this season, permitting followers to get a greater glimpse at Clark.
WTHR in Indianapolis was initially set to air Fever video games, however now will probably be getting some assist from 11 extra stations throughout 5 states. Indiana, Illinois, Ohio, Iowa and Kentucky will every have a minimum of one station exhibiting Clark and teammates take the courtroom this summer season.
With the expanded protection, Fever video games can have the possibility to achieve 4.6 million houses.
“This can be a pivotal second for our Fever group and ladies’s basketball, extra broadly, and this groundbreaking partnership with TEGNA [a broadcast and digital media company] will guarantee extra followers than ever will be capable of watch this historic season,” Pacers Sports activities and Leisure chief govt officer Rick Fuson mentioned in a press release.
Could 14 marks Indiana’s season opener on the Connecticut Solar, and the primary broadcast of this expanded protection will happen two days later once they tackle the visiting New York Liberty.
“We couldn’t be extra excited to make these thrilling WNBA video games obtainable to extra followers, in additional houses, throughout extra markets, together with Caitlin Clark’s dwelling state of Iowa,” TEGNA senior vp of media operations Brad Ramsey added in a press release.
The Fever went 13-27 final season, ending tenth within the 12-team WNBA.
Data from The Related Press and Discipline Stage Media was used on this report.