Photo by Steph Chambers/Getty Images
One week after her final game!
Caitlin Clark’s impact on women’s college basketball is incalculable. Beyond the massive spike in ratings that pushed the NCAA women’s Final Four to unprecedented levels, she also helped fuel a cultural revolution in the sport that changed the perception of women’s basketball.
The University of Iowa is wasting no time in recognizing Clark as she prepares to be the No. 1 pick in the WNBA Draft, with the Hawkeyes retiring her No. 22 and hanging it in the rafters. Head Coach Lisa Bluder explained how significant Clark has been to the program, and how her No. 22 will be a constant reminder of her brilliance.
“I look up in the rafters, and I see that Final Four banner from last year,” Iowa Coach Lisa Bluder said. “And I’m going to look forward to seeing No. 22 hang up there as well.”
A Des Moines native, Clark’s resume in college basketball is the stuff of legends.
2x AP Player of the Year (2023, 2024)
2x Wooden Award Winner (2023, 2024)
2x Naismith Player of the Year (2023, 2024)
2x USBWA Player of the Year (2023, 2024)
2x Honda Sports Award (2023, 2024)
2x Wade Trophy Winner (2023, 2024)
3x Dawn Staley Award (2021-2023)
4x First Team All-American (2021-2024)
… and the list goes on.
The Hawkeyes were unable to win a national championship during Clark’s reign, but she propelled the team to two straight appearances in the National Championship Game against LSU and South Carolina respectively. In her four years she morphed the Iowa program from being a solid team, into one of the best in the country — now turning it into a destination for recruits down the line.
Clark joins two other former Iowa players to have their numbers retired. Michelle Edwards (No. 30), whose number was retired in 1990 and current Las Vegas Aces center Megan Gustafson (No. 10), who had her number retired in 2020
