ESPN Exec Compares Caitlin Clark’s Impact to Gateway Drug Amidst Massive Surge in Women’s Sports

Caitlin Clark has been spearheading a massive surge in interest in women's sports ever since she burst onto the scene.

ESPN Exec Compares Caitlin Clark’s Impact to Gateway Drug Amidst Massive Surge in Women’s Sports

WNBA and Fever superstar Caitlin Clark (Image via FirstSportz)

In Short
  • Caitlin Clark is credited with significantly increasing interest in women's sports, described as a "gateway drug" by ESPN's VP of Women's Sports Programming.
  • ESPN is dedicating prime time slots to the WNBA and NWSL, anticipating continued growth in women's sports.
  • Caitlin Clark is preparing for her USA Basketball debut while her Indiana Fever teammates compete in the Unrivaled playoffs, with fans advocating for player compensation.

With less than a couple of months remaining before Caitlin Clark and her fellow competitors can get back to playing basketball, the sport still continues to rise in popularity.

ESPN recently announced that it was setting aside their prime time Sunday slots for the WNBA and NWSL, as it expects women’s sports to continue growing at the exponential level it currently enjoys.

Even though the likes of NWSL star Trinity Rodman and the accomplishments of women at the Milan Cortina Winter Olympics have managed to heighten the buzz, it is still Caitlin Clark who has been the de facto torchbearer for them.

Her exploits may have been to single-handedly elevate the WNBA to sell-out arenas and draw millions of fans, but those in positions of power know her impact far exceeds women’s basketball.

I say this in quite literally the most positive way possible: Caitlin’s a gateway drug for some people to women’s sports. If that brought you in, I’m going to keep you here.

Susie Piotrkowski said

The Vice President of Women’s Sports Programming at ESPN said this during Front Office Sports’ Live summit last week. Through her words, Susie Piotrkowski made it clear that Caitlin Clark is the one pulling millions of new fans into women’s sports.

But it is the ESPN exec’s job to keep them interested, unlike others who have been undermining the Indiana Fever superstar’s fame and supposedly undeserved praise.

USA basketball excited for Caitlin Clark’s preparations before global debut

Trinity Rodman, the US women’s national team, and the women competing at the recent Winter Olympics have had the opportunity to take their brands global.

Caitlin Clark practicing at the Fever's facilities
Caitlin Clark practicing at the Fever’s facilities (Image via Indiana Fever/X)

But Caitlin Clark could not, after she was famously snubbed for continuity and experience at the Paris Olympics. She will have to wait two more years before she can get a chance to play in the Los Angeles Summer Olympics.

Before that, USA basketball has to see her as an integral part of their future. Unlike the previous regime, the new director of the women’s team, Sue Bird, certainly believes it is time for Caitlin Clark to lead the next generation.

The 24-year-old will join fellow young stars Angel Reese, Paige Bueckers, Sonia Citron, Kiki Iriafen, and Fever teammate Aliyah Boston at the FIBA regional qualifiers in Puerto Rico in a few days.

For that, the two-time All-Star has been preparing nonstop at the Fever’s facilities for more than a month, and the team published a video earlier showing their guard shooting 22 out of the 25 shots she took from beyond the three-point line, all while using the FIBA basketball.

This excited USA basketball, and they proceeded to comment and share on their official social media pages, suggesting that they are interested in handing the rock to the young superstar as the program heads into the next era.

Sold-out crowd chants ‘Pay the Players’ at Unrivaled semifinals

While Caitlin Clark is busy preparing for her USA Basketball debut, some of her Indiana Fever teammates were in the postseason hunt in the second year of the Unrivaled playoffs.

With the games moving from Miami, Florida, to Barclays Center in Brooklyn, it was unsurprising to see the new wave of women’s sports fans fill out the arena.

During the first semifinal between Phantom and Vinyl, journalist Kareem Copeland captured a video where almost all 18,261 fans inside chanted ‘pay the players’ unanimously.

News of the WNBA and the players’ CBA negotiations has become the most important talking point this offseason. This fan support, which started since the 2025 All-Star game, is an indication that fans want the league to pay its players what they deserve.

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