Everything about WNBA star Caitlin Clark is outsized, from financial influence to impact on U.S. culture wars

If you wanted a moment that distilled Caitlin Clark’s current fame in the United States, you could not do better than a basketball practice last month during the WNBA’s All-Star weekend in Chicago. 

Clark is the most famous women’s basketball player in America — and often at the epicentre of debates about the positives and negatives of the league — and during a practice session for All-Star players on July 24 at the Obama Presidential Center, a familiar man approached the Indiana Fever point guard to offer some sage advice. 

The man’s name was Barack Obama — and a flurry of cameras allowed us to hear a conversation between the former U.S. president and the Fever point guard.

"You're great. You're fantastic,” said Obama. “Don't let all this nonsense get you down. I always say one of the things that was luckiest for me was I didn't get famous 'til I was like 45. So I was an old-ass man. I mean, you're my daughter's age. They've not had that much immersion, nonsense. So don't lose that joy. The game's like the game. And you're a hooper.”

“I try,” said Clark.

“No, you’re always a hooper,” responded Obama. “And you're on a nice little run right now."

Former President Obama to Caitlin Clark: “You’re great. You’re fantastic. Don’t let all this nonsense get you down” <a href="https://t.co/KjbW5fuZMs">pic.twitter.com/KjbW5fuZMs</a>

It was an outsized moment, but everything about Clark has been outsized since she entered the WNBA in 2024 — her fame, her otherworldly shooting from distance, her preternatural passing wizardly, her ability to draw television viewers, her being targeted by opposing players, her over-the-top reactions to foul calls, and her consistently being used as an avatar for others to express their politics