“When LeBron and Steph are gone”: $100m worth YouTuber MrBeast fuels fan frenzy with bold WNBA viewership prediction

The WNBA is getting tons of hype as women’s college basketball set viewership records during the NCAA Tournament. Some have wondered if the viewership records will translate over to the WNBA this upcoming season, especially with Caitlin Clark entering the draft.

Famous YouTuber Mr. Beast is among those who think the hype will translate to the next level. He tweeted out his opinion after the national championship game set a new viewership record with 18.7 million viewers.

Mr. Beast tweeted in response to Caitlin Clark’s tweet. Clark was hyped about the viewership numbers for the title game even though her Iowa Hawkeyes fell to the South Carolina Gamecocks.

Mr. Beast, who is worth $100 million as per Celebritynetworth.com, voiced support for Clark and women’s basketball. Here is what he predicted for the future of the sport.

“We might witness a WNBA finals getting more views than a NBA finals in our lifetimes,” Mr. Beast wrote.

Many reacted to Mr. Beast’s bold prediction. Some said the biggest NBA stars would need to hang it up first like this fan.

“When Lebron and Steph are gone this might actually happen,” a fan wrote.

Others were not so supportive. Some said the women's pro game could never be exciting enough to draw viewers.

“Jimmy has never watched a game of WNBA and seen how boring it is,” a fan wrote.

Others straight up came after Mr. Beast. Some said he was just trying to game social media for exposure and he does not actually care about or watch basketball.

“Bro comments on who ever is being talked about the most just for the exposure lol,” a fan wrote.

"Stick to YouTube challenges not sports," one fan said.

Another fan said that she is optimistic that the WNBA can garner that wide of an audience.

"I hope so," she wrote.

What is the WNBA viewership record?

Many are predicting the WNBA will gain more viewers this season when Caitlin Clark enters the league.

Clark led her Iowa Hawkeyes to the national championship game once again this season. Her final three games of the tournament all set new viewership records. The title game drew 18.7 million viewers.

No word yet on whether the women pros can match those numbers. Last season the women's league did set new records for viewership.

The 2023 WNBA Finals averaged 728,000 viewers per game. That was the highest in 20 years. It also marked a 36 percent increase from the previous season’s Finals. The title clinching Game 4 averaged 889,000 viewers and peaked at 1.3 million.

Last season, the NBA Finals saw low ratings but still averaged 11.6 million viewers per game. The 2022 Finals averaged 12 million.

The record for NBA Finals viewership came back in 1998 when Michael Jordan led the Chicago Bulls to the title. That series averaged 29.04 million viewers.