The WNBA just made history with its most-watched Finals Game 1 ever, but even that still wasn’t enough to top Caitlin Clark and the Indiana Fever in the first round.
Game 1 of the WNBA Finals between the Atlanta Dream and Golden State Valkyries averaged about 2.1 million viewers, setting a new record for a Finals opener.
But Indiana’s first-round elimination game against Las Vegas drew about 2.25 million viewers, meaning a Round 1 Fever game still pulled a larger television audience than the biggest Finals Game 1 in league history.
That doesn’t mean the Finals are struggling. Far from it. A record-setting 2.1 million viewers is another sign of how much the WNBA has grown.
But it does add more fuel to the Caitlin Clark debate.
Clark didn’t make the Finals. Indiana didn’t even make it out of the first round. Yet one of their Round 1 games still outdrew a historic Finals opener featuring two of the league’s best teams.
So is this simply proof that Caitlin Clark remains the WNBA’s biggest television draw, or is it unfair to compare one game from one round to another?
Sources: NBC Sports, Sports Media Watch