How did Caitlin Clark spend her offseason? Well, it was obvious in one photo that quickly went viral back in March. It was obvious in her interviews that made the rounds. Obvious from the greens where she had casually stolen the spotlight. And definitely obvious from her courtside cameos that screamed fan energy. While most WNBA stars were grinding it out in the Unrivaled league, Clark didn’t touch the court for 222 straight days and still stayed front and center. Now that’s star power.

And Unrivaled knows it. Reports say they tossed her a massive $1 million offer to play in their inaugural season, plus equity and revenue sharing. But Clark passed. After a marathon senior year at Iowa that rolled straight into her debut WNBA campaign, she chose to rest, reset, and hit the gym instead. No games, just grind. 

Now, heading into year two, Unrivaled is still chasing the big fish. ESPN sources say the league is looking to lock in more big-name talent, including A’ja Wilson and, of course, Clark. But Wilson’s reason for not joining the first season suggests problems for the league. “I like to enjoy my offseason. That’s my time to really just decompress,” Wilson explained to TIME. Dimming their hopes, she further said, “I just didn’t want to. I just want to protect my peace. Because once the season gets in, no one’s gonna think, Oh, you just got done playing Unrivaled, let’s take it easy.”

But the thing is…without those high-profile headliners, the hype might fizzle. A WNBA GM even told ESPN that Unrivaled needs 18-20 of the league’s top players on board or risk losing major interest. They’re not giving up, though. The league’s already working on season two tweaks, based on player and staff feedback. And with a new WNBA collective bargaining agreement coming after 2025, the negotiating table might look a whole lot different. 

Yet, just as they were thinking which cards to flip, Rachel DeMita decided to pull out a hard ‘No’.

 “I don’t think either of them will,” she said. “They don’t need the extra money. They took the entire offseason off to work on themselves, and we’ve already seen the difference.” She’s not wrong. A’ja’s sitting on a fully guaranteed $400,000 deal across two seasons. Clark’s WNBA check might be just $78,066 this year, but that’s barely 2–3% of her total income. The real money comes from brand endorsements.

DeMita also pointed out a key factor: Clark looks stronger this year. The muscle she’s added? That’s what a full offseason of training will do. No travel. No wear-and-tear. No risky overseas games. And that’s what Clark needed. Coming off that insane Iowa run straight into the W, she felt it all—the fatigue, the burnout. She wasn’t about to repeat that. And A’ja, who has been in the W scene for a while now, knows her priorities way too well.

As DeMita said, “Those two players being able to take the entire off season to work on themselves and not risk their bodies playing in an overseas league or even playing in unrivaled. And you just wonder if they are better prepared going into this season than players who did play overseas or who did played in unrivaled.” 

If we’re talking risk? Just ask Nika Mühl or Jordan Horston, both out for the season after tearing ACLs abroad. Then there is Betnijah Laney-Hamilton, who is done for the year after participating in barely two games in the Unrivaled. Other injuries that carry a risk of affecting the W season include Breanna Stewart, Kahleah Copper, Angel Reese, and Arike Ogunbowale. Fans have been hoping that whatever bothered them then won’t come back when the season starts. 

Also, the analyst predicted that if the new CBA adds solid salary incentives, teams might actually start encouraging players to stay home in the offseason. It’s all about protecting the investment. And speaking of investment, Indiana Fever fans are already seeing the return. 

Clark’s back and better, and the Fever are 2–0 in preseason. One win came without her. The other was a blowout at her old stomping ground in Iowa. The squad looks loaded, confident, and already climbing the championship odds. It’s giving: something special is brewing.

By the way, while doing all that, they also created a little history along the way. 

Caitlin Clark enters LeBron’s exclusive TV club

If you thought the hype stopped there, think again. Caitlin Clark just joined an elite ESPN club with none other than LeBron James. That Fever preseason game in Iowa against Brazil’s national team drew 1.3 million viewers. Let that sink in. Only two NBA preseason games on ESPN since 2010 did better, and both featured LeBron. One was a Cavs-Bulls game in 2017 (1.4M), the other a Warriors-Lakers clash in 2018 (2M). And now Clark’s on it. 

But it’s nothing new. Her viewership pull is wild. In 2024 alone, 22 WNBA regular-season games topped 1 million viewers, for the first time since 2008. Add the All-Star Game and the WNBA Draft, and that’s 24 events. Clark was part of 21 of them. The math has always been mathing. This year, Clark and the Fever will be everywhere. Out of 44 total games, 41 will be nationally televised or streamed. That includes 10 on ABC/ESPN and eight on ION.

As Clark put it herself: “We’re on ESPN. This is a great opportunity for our team.” And CC isn’t taking it for granted at all. She dropped 16 points in under 19 minutes before sitting out the fourth quarter. She has made it clear that ‘success’ to her only and only means bringing a championship. After leading the team all the way to the playoffs for the first time since 2016, she is eyeing that title this season. With sitting at the top in MVP odds and fourth in championship odds, the possibilities are indeed there. 

Now, only one preseason game remains—against Atlanta—before Clark and the Fever open the regular season in Chicago on May 17. Let’s see how she takes over this season!