Indiana Fever rookie guard Caitlin Clark addressed criticism of her team's slow start to the 2024 WNBA season after an 88-81 home win against the Washington Mystics, extending their current winning streak to three games.

“I think everybody just loves instant satisfaction in our world,” said Clark, who recorded 18 points, 12 rebounds, six assists and four steals, via ESPN. “No one came in here and said we were going to be WNBA Champions from day one in our locker room. That was never our goal. Our goal was to get back to the playoffs and we’re fighting for that every single night.

“This is the first time we’ve won four home games in a row since 2015. You have to have perspective on things, and that goes for life too. Like, have perspective on life. And there just needs to be solid perspective on what this team can accomplish. And I think everybody in our locker room had that.

“Nobody ever hung our heads. We had the hardest schedule to start. We didn’t get to practice much and we’re playing with the most inexperienced team in the WNBA. So, I mean, I think this group is starting to click and build some chemistry and it’s one day at a time.

“But like I said, everybody loves instant satisfaction. But, sure, we would have probably loved that too. But I think we all kept a good perspective on knowing we need to get better one step at a time and thats what we’re going to continue to do even though we’ve won three in a row at home here.”

The Fever went 3-10 through its first 13 games before winning three straight, which included a 91-84 win against the Atlanta Dream last Thursday (June 13) and a 91-83 win against the Chicago Sky on Sunday (June 16). Clark is currently averaging 16.3 points, 6.2 assists and 5.5 rebounds through her first 16 WNBA games.

Clark, the NCAA Division I all-time leading scorer, has led a significant increase in the WNBA's viewership during her rookie season. The Fever have accounted for all of the five most-watched WNBA games since 2002, which includes Sunday's matchup against the Sky (1.3 rating and 2.25 million viewers), surpassing Clark's WNBA debut on ESPN2 Opening Night as the league's most-watched game since the 2001 Memorial Day matchup between the Los Angeles Sparks and Houston Comets, which totaled 2.44 million viewers.

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