Caitlin Clark has had an undeniable impact on the WNBA since being drafted in 2024, but her reach extends far beyond women’s basketball. A recent report shows that her influence is now spilling into the NBA television landscape as well.
Clark appeared on NBC’s pregame show panel for Sunday night’s matchup at Madison Square Garden between the LA Lakers and the New York Knicks, and the results were historic. According to NBC, the game averaged 4.5 million viewers, making it the most-watched Sunday night regular-season NBA game since 2002, excluding Christmas Day matchups.
“The network aired the first two games of its Sunday Night Basketball franchise last weekend, and the doubleheader delivered record-setting viewership,” a report read. “Sunday night’s first game between the Los Angeles Lakers and New York Knicks from Madison Square Garden averaged 4.5 million viewers across NBC and Telemundo, making it the most-watched Sunday night regular-season game since 2002, excluding Christmas Day.”
Additionally, viewership peaked at 5 million during the broadcast, with the game finishing as the most-watched NBA contest across all networks this season, outside of Opening Night and Christmas Day.
Recognizing that impact, NBC Sports has already committed to bringing Caitlin Clark back later this season. NBC Sports president Rick Cordella confirmed that Clark is expected to return as an analyst for the Knicks’ Mar. 29 game against the OKC Thunder. However, that is not all. Cordella was also open to the idea of Clark making many more appearances in the future.
Caitlin Clark gets compared to Payton Pritchard by Indiana legend
During the Feb. 1 Lakers vs. Knicks pregame segment on NBC, Caitlin Clark found herself at the center of a viral moment after receiving an unexpected comparison from Reggie Miller. Miller said he believed Clark’s NBA player equivalent was Payton Pritchard.
Clark is a revolutionary WNBA talent, especially known for her deep shooting range and offensive impact. Because of that, many fans felt a comparison to someone like Steph Curry would have been more fitting. It was clear from Clark’s immediate reaction that she was not thrilled to hear Pritchard’s name.
While the internet quickly took notice of her annoyed reaction, Clark handled the situation with maturity and never showed any disrespect toward Pritchard. In fact, she later flipped the narrative in a classy way.
During the Celtics’ Feb. 3 game against the Dallas Mavericks, Pritchard drilled a mid-range jumper at the buzzer to end the first quarter. Clark, clearly aware of the online chatter surrounding the original comparison, shared the highlight and quote-tweeted it:
😏😏😏
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