Caitlin Clark Is About to Make a Childhood Dream Come True

In elementary school, Caitlin Clark wrote down a list of her goals that included playing in the WNBA one day. That dream will become a reality Monday night when Clark is expected to be taken first by the Indiana Fever in the WNBA draft. Her mom, Anne, still has the piece of paper that Clark wrote it on. "It's pretty special—looking back at that sheet, I was able to check off a lot of goals," Clark told the AP on Sunday. Clark said she never dreamed of the impact she's had in helping grow the sport, with record ratings and attendance numbers. "If you would have told me that we would [be] here playing in front of 24 million people on national television, I'd say that was insane," she noted. "I still can't wrap my head around it." She added that the achievement is "something that everyone should be proud of. Everybody that came before us to have this moment." Other draft tidbits:

• LA story: The Los Angeles Sparks may hold the key to how the rest of the draft unfolds after Clark goes No. 1. Los Angeles has the No. 2 and No. 4 picks. The team lost franchise star Nneka Ogwumike in free agency to Seattle, as well as guard Jordin Canada to Atlanta in a trade, so it's looking to rebuild. The Sparks most likely will choose between Stanford forward Cameron Brink, Tennessee wing Rickea Jackson, and South Carolina center Kamilla Cardoso.
• Swapping picks: The Chicago Sky, who own the No. 3 pick, also traded up one spot to get No. 7 from Minnesota. The Sky sent the No. 8 pick, as well as Sika Kone, the Sky's second-round pick next year, and the rights to swap first-round picks in 2026, to Minnesota. Chicago also received Nikolina Milic from Minnesota.
• Watch party: Fans can join Nneka Ogwumike and sister Chiney Ogwumike, Ashley Joens, and Kristen Meyer—Clark's high school coach—online from 7pm to 8pm ET as part of a virtual watch event via HANG Media and YouTube. Meyer has often been asked what Clark was like in high school. She recalls a time when Clark scored 60 points in a game her junior year, making 13 of 17 from behind the arc in a close game. "We've seen a number of times she gets in a zone, you can't stop her," Meyer said.

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