ESPN Justifies Why Caitlin Clark Is Ahead Of Angel Reese In WNBA ROY Race

Angel Reese won Rookie of the Month for June, and amid her recent double-double streak, many might assume that the Chicago Sky star has already taken the lead in the WNBA Rookie of the Year race. ESPN, however, believes Indiana Fever sharpshooter Caitlin Clark is still ahead.

In its latest WNBA 2024 awards tracker, ESPN still has Clark as frontrunner for the award, with Reese named as the “top challenger.”

ESPN’s women’s sports reporter Michael Voepel argued that the numbers favor Clark despite Reese recently going on a dominant streak. After all, Clark “leads all rookies in scoring (16.0), assists (7.1), 3-pointers (2.7 per game) and minutes played (34.4).”

The Fever star is also “second in steals (1.3) and fourth in rebounding (5.7).” While her league-leading 5.6 turnovers is a problem, the fact remains that Clark has been huge in bringing Indiana back to a potential playoff contention.

Chicago Sky forward Angel Reese (5) looks on during the second half of a basketball game against the Indiana Fever at Wintrust Arena.

Kamil Krzaczynski-USA TODAY Sports

Voepel did emphasize that Reese is a really strong challenger for the award, predicting that unlike the past four Rookie of the Year races that were won by a landslide, the 2024 battle is already brewing to be a tight one.

“This ROY race projects more like 2019, when it was also between a forward (Collier) and a guard (the Dallas Wings’ Arike Ogunbowale). Collier won 29 votes to 14,” Voepel explained.

It remains to be seen who will actually win the ROY award. But for now, at least in ESPN’s view, Caitlin Clark is still ahead in the race against Angel Reese.