Rare Caitlin Clark Trading Card Obliterates WNBA Record by $300K

Indiana Fever star Caitlin Clark's merchandise tends to get sold out before long, proving her star power is unlike anything the league has seen.

Rare Caitlin Clark Trading Card Obliterates WNBA Record by $300K

Caitlin Clark card sells for WNBA record $660,000 (Image via FirstSportz)

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Never before in the WNBA’s history has a single player managed to move the needle by this much. Caitlin Clark has become the most famous female athlete in the world, and that stardom continues to boost the league every single day.

The league’s viewership ratings rise and fall depending on whether she is playing or not. Even the biggest stars of the league could not stop the ratings from falling by 33% when she sat on the bench with a clipboard in her hands.

Such is the ‘aura’, as some label it, that fans gravitate towards Caitlin Clark and want to see her continue to light up the WNBA. All of this has had a tremendous impact on merchandise. The Fever store generally runs out of her gear, and Wilson basketball continuously has to replenish exhausted stock.

Her Nike Kobe 5 Protro “Indiana Fever” sneaker has sold out faster than the company expected. Now, many resellers are demanding more than $300 for a pair. This has also impacted trading cards bearing her name.

The last time a rare card, a 2024 Panini Prizm WNBA Gold Vinyl 1/1 autograph rookie card, was sold at an auction, it fetched $366,000. This time, another rare card, Caitlin Clark Flawless Logowoman 1/1, sold for an eye-popping $660,000.

This card features the most coveted patch in the league and has an inscription from her that reads, ‘769 pts and counting’. If this card could fetch this much, it is possible that Clark’s cards could break the $1 million barrier down the line.

There was a time when fans thought that it was surreal when Clark’s cards were beating the rest of the WNBA by a mile. Now, her own card has set a new record, besting one set by another card featuring her signature.

Skip Bayless believes WNBA’s future depends on Caitlin Clark’s health

Caitlin Clark’s value as a superstar athlete is continuously on the rise. However, the WNBA’s growth is tied to her performances on the court. That is where Skip Bayless believes the league needs to get serious about her injuries.

After playing 181 straight games with no injuries, you have 4 soft tissue injuries in 2 and a half months. Caitlin Clark has had a rough year. But all I know about the WNBA, is it better get Caitlin Clark physically and mentally healthy, or risk sliding back off the national map.

Skip Bayless said on his show

The veteran analyst believes, just like him, many are watching the WNBA just because the Fever guard plays. Before she arrived, most of the million-plus viewers never existed, and they might not if she continues to struggle with injuries.

Bayless wants the league to figure out and help the 23-year-old recover in the best way possible so that they can keep drawing her fans for the next decade or more. Without her, the league might go back to being irrelevant.

Caitlin Clark as a prop at Miss USA trials

Skip Bayless might have a point here, considering how many fans tune in to watch other WNBA games when Caitlin Clark is playing. Without her, those numbers drop by 50%. It even slows the league’s ability to reach people who have never taken an interest in the game.

Caitlin Clark cheering on her Fever in win
Caitlin Clark cheering on her Fever in win (Image via Open Source/X)

For instance, a video uploaded by a user by the name of gracesmitheyy reveals herself dressed in a No. 22 Iowa Hawkeyes jersey, a matching yellow skirt with a basketball net hanging from her waist. She has an Iowa edition Wilson basketball in her hands, and enacts Clark’s hand gestures from her games.

If this is the impact the Iowa native can have, then Bayless’ point might come true. The league is risking its growth and needs to help its ‘golden goose’ get back on the court as soon as possible.

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