Fever star guard Caitlin Clark named WNBA top rookie in near-unanimous vote

Caitlin Clark has been named the WNBA rookie of the year in a near-unanimous vote, giving the Indiana Fever back-to-back winners after Aliyah Boston won the honour last season.

A national panel of sportswriters and sportscasters gave Clark 66 of 67 votes in balloting released Thursday. Chicago Sky forward Angel Reese received the other.

Clark, the No. 1 overall pick from Iowa, averaged 19.2 points and a league-best 8.4 assists per game while helping the WNBA set attendance records and garner mainstream attention.

She struggled a bit early in the season but found her groove and was an all-star starter. The unanimous Associated Press rookie of the year led the Fever to the playoffs for the first time since 2016 and a 20-20 record after a 1-8 start.

"I'm a tough grader. I feel like I had a solid year," Clark said after the Fever were eliminated in the first round of the playoffs. "For me, the fun part is like I feel like I'm just scratching the surface and I'm the one that's nit-picking every single thing I do.

"I know I want to help this franchise. … I know there's a lot of room for me to continue to improve so that's what excites me the most. I feel like I continue to get a lot better."

the moment she got the call