"You drive ratings, you get all the top spots": ESPN analyst responds after catching strays from Caitlin Clark fans over Fever's national spotlight

Ahead of the 2025 season, it was revealed that Caitlin Clark and the Indiana Fever will play most of their games on TV. After being dragged into unwanted discourse online, one analyst gave her take on the star guard being featured to this degree.

While many fans were excited to see Clark get many national TV games, some were outraged to hear this. Amid the backlash, one supporter called out a handful of talking heads in the WNBA space. Among those tagged was ESPN's Elle Duncan.

Duncan responded to this thread and gave her thoughts on the WNBA pushing Caitlin Clark with its national TV schedule. She compared it to teams like the LA Lakers and Kansas City Chiefs, explaining that the top draws will always get the most attention.

"Any league is gonna always lean on scheduling its main attractions the most. It’s why the Chiefs get every national gm, why the Lakers will get more play than anyone, why MLB will lean Dodgers. This is how it works. You drive ratings, you get all the top spots. Period," Duncan tweeted on Monday.

Along with Clark heading into her second season, there are other reasons the Fever find themselves with many national TV games. Indiana made numerous additions in the offseason to improve the roster and now has a chance to enter the conversation for contenders in 2025.

---

Fan lays out key facts that led to Caitlin Clark's national TV schedule

Seeing that she became a polarizing figure in her rookie season, Caitlin Clark being put all over the WNBA's national TV schedule had mixed reactions. While people were speaking out against the decision, one supporter laid out an array of facts as to why the league did this.

In an elongated post on X (formerly Twitter), a fan dove into the Indiana Fever's strong presence on TV this upcoming season. They laid out what Clark accomplished in year one and her overall impact on the WNBA.

Coming off a historic run in college at Iowa, Clark brought countless new fans to the WNBA last year. She quickly became a mainstream star in the sports world, which resulted in women's basketball getting more coverage than ever before.

Behind these facts and many others, most fans were pleased that the star guard's games will be more accessible this season.

With almost all of her games being played in front of a national audience, all the pieces are in place for Clark to keep growing as a face of the league. The WNBA is pushing for this, hoping her large fanbase can help expand women's basketball overall.