Clark vs. Reese: Bio, Relationship, Journey, Career, Salary, WNBA, Basketball History

Table of Contents

Bio

American collegiate basketball player Angel Reese was born on May 6, 2002, and currently plays for the LSU Tigers of the South eastern Conference (SEC). Reese went to Saint Frances Academy in Baltimore, Maryland, where she was named the number two player in her class by ESPN and received McDonald’s All-American honours in 2020.

Caitlin Clark was born on January 22, 2002, and she plays for the Big Ten Conference’s Iowa Hawkeyes. She is considered as one of the best players in college basketball history and holds the record for most points scored in NCAA Division One.

Relationship

The players have been competing against one another since their high school Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) days; they did not meet on the collegiate court. Prior to the start of the 2023–2024 season, Angel addressed rumours of hostility between Caitlin and herself. “Oh my goodness, I adore Caitlin; we’ve been in competition since we were in AAU,” she exclaimed to reporters in October 2023 at LSU’s media day. It was consistently enjoyable and competitive. Hopefully, we’ll even be teammates one day. She is an excellent teammate, player, shooter, and human being.

Friendship

The women’s NCAA tournament will include a rematch of the national championship game from the previous year on Monday night. A chance to play in the Final Four is at stake when LSU takes on the Iowa Hawkeyes.As a result, we get to watch Angel Reese and Caitlin Clark, the two most divisive players in women’s hoops, square off once more. Reese and the Tigers defeated Clark and her Hawkeyes 102–85 in the previous season.Before the two faced off once more, Clark was questioned about her feelings for Reese.

Collaboration

There are 913 miles between Caitlin Clark and Angel Reeses and 913 miles separating Iowa City and Baton Rogue. They are by nature adversaries. That was guaranteed by the national championship battle between Reese’s LSU team and Clark’s Iowa club last year, and a repeat between the two teams is further stoking the flames.Both of them are dynamic players, according to Iowa head coach Lisa Bluder. Both of them are sentimental. Both of them have a strong interest in the game. They are all experts in their respective fields. You will undoubtedly find yourself discussing the two of them frequently, in my opinion.

Journey

Clark said, “Angel and I have always been bitter rivals,” according to On3. Of course, she began her playing career in the Big Ten, which only heightens the intrigue around women’s basketball. We’ve got excellent competition from you all year long. But Angel, I believe, would agree that there are other teams in women’s basketball besides us.

Our game is so good because it is competitive in more ways than one. That’s not all it has to offer. To be truly excellent, we need more than one person. Whether she chooses to stay or leave, I believe we will both have successful careers in the WNBA, which has always been our shared goal. I believe that we are both excited.

Caitlin Clark vs. Angel Reese in NCAA Elite Eight Showdown

This will be the last time Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese face off in a collegiate matchup when Iowa takes on LSU in hopes of earning a ticket to the 2024 Final Four.One of the most anticipated games in college basketball history, the Elite Eight clash between the Hawkeyes and Tigers this year is a rematch of last year’s national championship game.

Furthermore, despite their particular rivalry taking centre stage in the championship game, Clark and Reese have a longer history of rivalry .The regional final on Monday will be Clark and Reese’s seventh meeting in the head-to-head match. Reese played two years at Iowa’s Big Ten conference rival Maryland before to joining LSU .

Career

The first three were set up by Reese’s tenure as a Big Ten player. Reese was the top-ranked recruit in programme history when she signed with the Maryland Terrapins, but a damaged right foot ended her rookie campaign in 2020–21. She was chosen for the third All-American team by the Associated Press as a sophomore. In her junior year, Reese switched to LSU, where she was overwhelmingly chosen for the first team of All-America players. She led LSU to its first national championship and was voted Most Outstanding Player. Reese set records for single-season rebounding and double-doubles in the SEC and NCAA. As a senior, she was chosen as the SEC Player of the Year and an All-American. On the international scene, Reese helped the United States achieve a silver medal at the 2023 FIBA Women’s AmeriCup. She is supposedly one of the top paid collegiate athletes for image, likeness, and name sponsorships.

Early life

Ron James served as her coach for Team Takeover, an Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) team headquartered in Washington, D.C. that plays on the national circuit of the Nike Elite Youth Basketball League (EYBL).

Madison Scott, Mir McLean, and Jakia Brown-Turner were her AAU teammates; at the conclusion of their high school seasons, ESPN rated all three of them with five stars.Her AAU teammates included future Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA) player Ashley Joens, and she was coached by Dickson Jensen of Attack. Inspired by Maya Moore of the Minnesota Lynx, the WNBA team nearest to Clark’s hometown, she drove three and a half hours with her father to see their games. After Harrison Barnes joined the programme, she developed an admiration for the All Iowa Attack alumni and started cheering for the North Carolina Tar Heels.

Business

Angel Reese and Caitlin Clark are two of the most well-known collegiate female basketball players. In athletics, they are also among the most paid collegiate athletes. Reese has a NIL valuation of $1.8 million, per Business Insider.

Clark has a $3.1 million NIL valuation. Additionally, they both possess the celebrity status necessary to attract attention and fans to the WNBA. Both have the potential to alter the game if they can attract their college fan bases to the WNBA, and the league.

Salary

What type of pay will these women receive in the WNBA now? Of course, it won’t be as much as NBA stars. According to Sports Business, the minimum wage for NBA players, excluding those on two-way contracts, is approximately $1,119,563, which is far less than the top salaries for WNBA players. Clark, the top choice in the WNBA, will probably start with a base salary of about $76,000. However, sponsorships and endorsements might be very advantageous for both Clark and Reese.

WNBA

A good old-fashioned, bitter, historical rivalry is the best thing about sports.The Bulls led by Michael Jordan achieved their zenith only after defeating the Bad Boy Pistons led by Isiah Thomas. There are two scheduled watching matches between Duke and North Carolina each year.The Celtics and Lakers rivalry is in its fifth decade.

The iconic throwdowns between Magic Johnson and Larry Bird still have an impact today.They enhance the gameplay.The Indiana Fever will undoubtedly select Caitlin Clark with the first overall pick in the 2024 WNBA Draft. The Fever have the number one pick in the lottery, Clark has declared for the draft, and if they selected anyone else instead of the woman who transformed collegiate women’s basketball, well, they’d beg to be fired.