A few weekends ago, my daughter Ali was with me in Nashville. She wants to play professional football and we were there alongside thousands of Premier League fans for the NBC Fan Fest.
On Sunday, however, Ali raced home, making the three-hour drive to make sure she was back to hear about the national championship game between Iowa and South Carolina.
Ali is an aspiring young soccer player about to start high school – she has everything better to do on the weekends. But she chose to go home to check on Caitlin Clark. That says a lot.
Caitlin Clark…wow. She is truly incredible. A superstar and a great role model. There are a lot of athletes who are good players but, ultimately, there isn’t a lot of substance to sustain them when times get tough.
Clark is not extravagant, she is not eccentric in the way she dresses or in the way she performs. There is something healthy and pure about it. Watching her, you feel like there is still greatness in the sport.
Caitlin Clark was selected by the Indiana Fever with the No. 1 pick in the 2024 WNBA Draft
Tim Howard and his daughter Ali, an aspiring soccer player, at the NBC Fan Fest in Nashville
Nearly 19 million fans watched Clark’s Iowa take on South Carolina in March Madness.
Tim Howard, DailyMail.com sports columnist
She keeps quiet, she walks, she asks for the ball in big moments and she takes the team on her back. When she fails, she handles it with grace and dignity. How powerful is it?
I’d be shocked if this didn’t turn out to be a time when women’s sports took off. More and more eyes are on him and the dollar signs always follow. As the father of a daughter who wants to play professionally, you hope that more Caitlin Clarks come along in the near future. Time will tell us.
After Caitlin was drafted by the Indiana Fever, even Joe Biden had a say in her WNBA contract. The No. 1 pick is projected to make $76,000 in her first year – should she make more? Of course. Should all female athletes receive more money? Of course.
I talked to my daughter about equal pay and told her: if you are ever in a position to be part of a union or labor association, you fight like hell to get what you think you are worth.
Clark will help him. A rising tide lifts all boats. The more people who watch basketball and spend their money on it, it will benefit all women and all women’s sports.
The 22-year-old has become one of the hottest athletes in all of American sports.
Fever star’s introductory press conference overshadowed by firestorm of sexism
Unfortunately, this week also highlighted that we still have a long way to go when it comes to the treatment of women.
A reporter’s comments during Clark’s introductory press conference shed light on how we perceive them, how we talk to them, and how we value them.
My daughter is going to college next year and that will bring her amazing opportunities, but I’m still trying to teach. And when these things happen, we are quick to start the conversation and say: there are still prejudices, we still need to break down the barriers. Maybe she can be part of it.
Right now, Clark will be the face of the WNBA at just 22 years old. This comes with a lot of pressure. Women’s college basketball has really been brought to the forefront over the last couple of years – there’s been controversy and trash talk…and it’s all good for the game.
But Caitlin continued to play at an elite level. When she was criticized during difficult times, she overcame herself. It’s hard to do and it says a lot about who she is as a woman and as an athlete.
The Indiana Fever star is mobbed by autograph hunters at this week’s draft in New York
If someone came near me, I would fight back with my claws out and my teeth showing. But she is very elegant in the way she carries herself on and off the field.
She didn’t really make any missteps. But I played alongside other young superstars like Cristiano Ronaldo and the truth is? We want to see people rise, but we also like to see them fall. We don’t want anyone to stay too high for too long. We want to poke holes in them and rejoice in their demise. That’s how it works.
She needs to understand that not everyone wants her to succeed. And unfortunately, very few athletes manage to achieve fame, fortune and the spotlight. It’s a difficult mix.
NIL means she had some money in her pocket at university. But guess what? She’ll have a lot more now, and she’ll have carte blanche to do what she wants. So to do it right, she needs to be self-aware.
I never met Caitlin. Maybe someday. I guess I’ll have to go to a Fever game.
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