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Jon Wertheim makes a strange comment to Caitlin Clark on “60 Minutes” about the WNBA’s “breakthrough.”
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Jon Wertheim makes a strange comment to Caitlin Clark on “60 Minutes” about the WNBA’s “breakthrough.”

The entire WNBA — not Caitlin Clark — was the breakout star of the season, CBS “60 Minutes” reporter Jon Wertheim said on Sunday night’s episode.

Explaining the rise of the WNBA, Wertheim spoke with Clark, her teammate Aliyah Boston, Minnesota Lynx star Napheesa Collier and WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert for the article, which called the rookie of the year “undoubtedly the league’s star attraction, “but not that” was described by only one.”

“The real breakout star of this WNBA season is the W itself,” Wertheim said. “After a collegiate season that would have been unimaginable just a few years ago, the women’s championship game outperformed the men’s. W games can attract more attention than NBA games.

“Across the league, viewership is up 48%.”

But it was Clark who set the bar this season and put together arguably the best rookie season the WNBA has ever seen. Clark didn’t win MVP and Rookie of the Year honors in the same seasons as Candace Parker with the Los Angeles Sparks, but she rewrote the record books several times.

Jon Wertheim interviews Caitlin Clark on “60 Minutes” on September 29, 2024. 60 minutes

Clark became the first rookie in WNBA history to score at least 25 points, five rebounds and five assists in a playoff game when she did so in Game 2 of the playoff matchup against the Connecticut Sun. To be fair, Wertheim interviewed Clark before the playoffs began.

Regardless, she became the first rookie to record a triple-double when she played against the New York Liberty in July. She also became the first player in WNBA history to accomplish this feat against a team ranked first in the standings.

She set a single-game assist record with 19 assists against the Dallas Wings. At the end of the season she set the season record with a total of 337 assists.

Jon Wertheim and Caitlin Clark discuss the rise of the WNBA on “60 Minutes.” 60 minutes
Caitlin Clark was named rookie of the year USA TODAY Sports via Reuters Con

Clark set the rookie record for most 3-pointers in a single season with 122 – the second most in a single season. She also became the first player in WNBA history to record at least 25 points, 10 assists and five 3-pointers in multiple career games.

Those records are just the tip of the iceberg, not to mention she was the unanimous AP WNBA Rookie of the Year.

Ratings-wise, Clark and the Fever was must-see television.

Caitlin Clark on “60 Minutes” 60 minutes

Fox Sports’ Michael Mulvihill reinforced that point with statistics this month. He wrote down

The breakout star is clear, and she averaged 19.2 points, 8.4 assists and 5.7 rebounds per game and finished fourth in MVP voting.

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