New book reveals why Caitlin Clark's Rookie of the Year award looked so different from Paige Bueckers'

Chad Withrow applauds Paige Bueckers for speaking on her relationship with her new teammate, Azzi Fudd.

The internet spent a good chunk of 2024 convinced the WNBA dropped the ball when it came to celebrating Caitlin Clark’s Rookie of the Year award. And on the surface, it sure looked that way.

Clark — who took home the honor after a historic debut season — got a pretty low-key acknowledgment. She received the news via a speakerphone call from Commissioner Cathy Engelbert during practice. That was it.

Fast forward a year, and Paige Bueckers is receiving her 2025 Rookie of the Year award on national television, with Engelbert showing up in person, on "The Jennifer Hudson Show".

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Naturally, fans noticed the discrepancy, and they had some questions.

But according to a newly released paperback edition of On Her Game: Caitlin Clark and the Revolution in Women’s Sports by Christine Brennan, the reality is a little more complicated than the internet outrage suggested.

In fact, WNBA spokesman Ron Howard says the league tried to give Clark similar fanfare.

"We offered to come to Indy after the team season had finished and do a press conference and/or have [NBA Entertainment] do a sit down with CC," Howard said, via Brennan’s book. "But both the team and her agent declined the offer ... It was difficult to do it while the team was in Connecticut, but we offered to do something in Indianapolis afterwards and we were turned down."

Indiana Fever guard Caitlin Clark and Dallas Wings guard Paige Bueckers compete during an inbounds play in the first half at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis on April 30, 2026. (Trevor Ruszkowski/Imagn Images)

He added that the league even had a broader