Clark and Reese have been rivals since college

CAITLIN Clark and Angel Reese battled it out as the top rookies throughout this WNBA season, but it was Clark who emerged as the best of the bunch.

Clark and Reese’s rivalry has grown ever since their college days at Iowa and LSU, and they will continue entertaining fans going head to head for years to come.

Caitlin Clark was named WNBA Rookie of the Year this seasonCredit: Getty

Clark battled against fellow rookie Angel Reese throughout the seasonCredit: Getty

Clark and Reese instantly cemented themselves as the two best rookies in the WNBA this year, and at first it was a close battle for the Rookie of the Year award.

The prolific shooting ability that Clark displayed in college took a little while to come into play in the pros, but she was proving to be elite when it came to ball movement and assisting.

On the other side, Reese was on a historic streak of rebounding ability, notching double-double after double-double.

She set the WNBA record for most consecutive double-doubles with 15.

While the two battled it out statistically, their rivalry came to blows midseason when the Indiana Fever and Chicago Sky faced off.

In that game, Clark got hit to the floor by Reese’s teammate Chennedy Carter for a flagrant foul.

The moment may have been a boiling over of the beef between the two sides after Reese beat Clark in March Madness in 2023 before Clark returned the favor in 2024.

The hit that Clark took received massive amounts of backlash, but her and Reese have maintained that there is no actual bad blood between them.

“I don’t think people realize it’s not personal,” Reese said before their matchup in the 2024 Elite Eight.

“I think people just take it like we hate each other. Me and Caitlin Clark don’t hate each other. I want everybody to understand that.”

Clark echoed the same sentiment before the game to the media.

“There’s definitely that competitive fire,” Clark said.

“Both of us want to win more than anything, and that’s how it should be when you’re a competitor and you get into a situation like this, whether it was the national championship, whether it’s the Elite Eight.

“I think that’s the main similarity is how competitive we are.

“We both grew up loving this game, and we’re going to do anything we can to help our teams win.”

While Clark and Reese may not have a personal rivalry, many fans perceive it as so, and Clark did end up winning that rivalry in year one.

WNBA All-Star rosters

THE 2024 WNBA All-Star game rosters have been announced, with Team WNBA set to face Team USA on July 20.

Team WNBA:

DeWanna Bonner – Connecticut Sun
Aliyah Boston – Indiana Fever
Caitlin Clark – Indiana Fever
Allisha Gray – Atlanta Dream
Dearica Hamby – Los Angeles Sparks
Brionna Jones – Connecticut Sun
Jonquel Jones – New York Liberty
Kayla McBride – Minnesota Lynx
Kelsey Mitchell – Indiana Fever
Arike Ogunbowale – Dallas Wings
Nneka Ogwumike – Seattle Storm
Angel Reese – Chicago Sky

Team USA:

Napheesa Collier – Minnesota Lynx
Kahleah Copper – Phoenix Mercury
Chelsea Gray – Las Vegas Aces
Brittney Griner – Phoenix Mercury
Sabrina Ionescu – New York Liberty
Jewell Loyd – Seattle Storm
Kelsey Plum – Las Vegas Aces
Breanna Stewart – New York Liberty
Diana Taurasi – Phoenix Mercury
Alyssa Thomas – Connecticut Sun
A’ja Wilson – Las Vegas Aces

She finished the season averaging 19.2 points, 5.7 rebounds, and 8.4 assists per game.

Clark also set the WNBA record for assists in a season, assists in a single game, and points in a rookie season.

Reese’s season was shortened due to a wrist injury at the end of the year, but she averaged 13.6 points, 13.1 rebounds, and 1.9 assists per game.

Both made the All Star game in their rookie season, but it was Clark who was unanimously voted as the Rookie of the Year this season.

Clark’s Fever also made it into the WNBA playoffs, while the Sky are on the outside looking in.

This season at least settled for now which of the two players is better, but the rivalry will only continue to shine as Clark and Reese grow as players in the league.

Clark set multiple WNBA records in her first season in the leagueCredit: Getty