Kaitlyn Clark wins WNBA Rookie of the Year honors

Indiana Fever guard Kaitlin Clark has been almost unanimously selected for the WNBA Rookie of the Year award, the league announced Thursday.

Clark, who was named the No. 1 pick in April, received 66 of 67 votes from the National Media Committee. The other vote went to Angel Reese of the Chicago Sky, who was the No. 7 pick in the draft.

Fever players have won the award in consecutive seasons. Indiana forward/center Aliyah Boston won the honor last year after also being a first-round pick. Clark and Boston helped lead the Fever to their first playoff appearance since 2016 before being swept by the Connecticut Sun in the first round.

“I am extremely honored to be named Rookie of the Year, but more than that, I am grateful to everyone who supported me throughout last season – my family, friends, teammates, the Fever organization and everyone who cheered us all on,” Clark said in a statement. “I am extremely proud of what we have accomplished and excited.” Very excited about what the future holds.”

Clark was joined on the WNBA All-Rookie Team by Reyes, Sky center Camila Cardoso, Rekia Jackson of the Los Angeles Sparks and Leonie Fibic of the New York Liberty.

Clark had a record-breaking first season in the WNBA that followed her history-making college career at Iowa State, where she became the all-time leading scorer in Division I men’s or women’s basketball.

She started all 40 regular season games for the Fever, who went 20-20 and finished sixth in the league. She averaged 19.2 points, a WNBA-best 8.4 assists, 5.7 rebounds and 1.3 steals in 35.4 minutes per game. She led all juniors in each of those categories except rebounding, in which she placed third. Reese led the WNBA in rebounding average at 13.1.

Besides leading the league in assists, Clark ranked first in 3-pointers made (122) and second in minutes per game and free throw percentage (90.6). She was seventh overall in scoring.

Her 337 assists set a WNBA single-season record, and she had a single-game record of 19 assists against the Dallas Wings in July. She also set the rookie season mark with 769 points and became the first WNBA rookie to record a triple-double. (She had two.)

Speaking after the Fever’s 87-81 loss in Game 2 against the Sun, Clark said she was thrilled about the potential she and the team had ahead of them.

“The fun part is I feel like I’m just scratching the surface,” Clark said. “I know I want to help this franchise get better, help my teammates get better, and be better for my teammates. I know there’s a lot of room for me to continue to get better, so that’s what excites me the most.”