WNBA Offered Caitlin Clark In-Person Rookie Award Event but Fever and Agent Declined

Fans criticized the WNBA last year for giving Caitlin Clark a low-key announcement of her 2024 Rookie of the Year award. Clark learned of the honor through a speakerphone call from Commissioner Cathy Engelbert during practice.

This year, Paige Bueckers received her 2025 Rookie of the Year award on national television. Engelbert presented it in person on "The Jennifer Hudson Show".

A new paperback edition of Christine Brennan's book, On Her Game: Caitlin Clark and the Revolution in Women's Sports, provides more details. WNBA spokesman Ron Howard said the league tried to arrange similar fanfare for Clark.

"We offered to come to Indy after the team season had finished and do a press conference and/or have [NBA Entertainment] do a sit down with CC," Howard said, according to the book. "But both the team and her agent declined the offer ... It was difficult to do it while the team was in Connecticut, but we offered to do something in Indianapolis afterwards and we were turned down."

Howard added that the league lined up another opportunity: "Adding to that the fact that we had a chance to do a sit down with her for GMA as well but the opportunities were declined."

Clark received the award during a playoff series between the Indiana Fever and the Connecticut Sun. The timing made a media tour impractical.

Bueckers' Dallas Wings finished the season 10-34 and missed the playoffs.

Clark and Bueckers face off on May 9, when the Fever host the Wings to open the 2026 season.