Caitlin Clark Recalls Life-Changing Moment in Minnesota

Caitlin Clark (22) of the Indiana Fever attempts a three pointer as Seattle Storm head coach, Noelle Quinn, left, watches during a game against the Seattle Storm at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, Indiana, on Aug. 18, 2024. Chet White/Getty Images

Ten seconds in Minnesota during the 2014 Lynx season changed Indiana Fever guard Caitlin Clark’s life as a 12-year-old girl, and the fruits of it show whenever the fans gather at WNBA arenas for the game’s biggest star.

An Iowa native, Clark wanted to meet Lynx player and Hall of Famer Maya Moore in 2014—a story Clark recounted earlier this year during ESPN’s “College Gameday” when she still played for the Hawkeyes. Clark ran to meet Moore after a game in Minneapolis—where Clark will play for the second time as a WNBA player on Aug. 24.

“All I ever wanted to do was meet her. I didn’t have a phone, my dad didn’t have his phone, so I just ran over and said, ‘can you sign my shirt,’ gave her a hug, ran away,” Clark told ESPN about the 2014 moment. “It’s like the most vivid memory I have of women’s basketball growing up.”

“I still tell everybody that story because it meant so much to me,” Clark said. “It’s, like, so cool.”

Many Clark fans made the four-hour trek from Iowa to Minneapolis last time the Fever came to town on July 14. She took time greeting fans and signing autographs after an 81–74 win over the Western Conference leaders.

“Ten seconds can go a long way in somebody’s life,” Clark in May told USA Today of her interaction with Moore and its lasting impact. “That’s a good lesson whether you play sports or don’t play sports, how you treat somebody matters.”

“I just try to take as much time as I can for those young girls because Maya was so nice to me when I ran up to her, and that’s something that’s stuck with me all the way until I’m 22 years old,” Clark said.

Moore helped the Lynx build a dynasty in the 2010s and Clark followed it from her hometown of Des Moines, Iowa. The Lynx won four WNBA titles in that decade between 2011 and 2017, which equaled the defunct Houston Comets for the most titles at the time.

“I grew up loving the Minnesota Lynx. I probably shouldn’t say that anymore,” Clark joked during her introductory press conference in April.

“That was obviously the closest WNBA team from where I grew up,” she added. “Minneapolis was four hours from my house and obviously they had a dynasty that was obviously really easy to cheer for.”

Clark, meanwhile, developed her own following in Iowa as a youth basketball phenom followed by a stellar prep hoops career at Dowling Catholic. Her success and stardom only grew at Iowa, where she became the NCAA’s all-time career scoring leader.

Despite the regional fandom, the Lynx didn’t tank last season to take Clark in the WNBA Draft. Instead, the No. 1 pick went to the Fever, and the Lynx ended up with the No. 8 pick, just missing another highly touted rookie in Angel Reese.

“Caitlin Clark might make you want to lose every game but not here,” Lynx head coach Cheryl Reeve told reporters in April 2023.

Reeve stuck to her word as the Lynx went 19–21 and lost in the first round of the playoffs. The Lynx added former Utah standout Alissa Pili, who has played a minor role on a team that’s in the running for a high playoff seed at 20–8 overall. That said, Reeve and the Lynx will witness the Clark craze on their home court at least one more time this season.

“I understand it,” Lynx head coach Cheryl Reeve said about Clark’s popularity in an interview with the Star Tribune’s Kent Youngblood in March. “I get the passion for Caitlin Clark, her game, that her fans have for her around the country. I watched it with Steph Curry. And now just Caitlin, the whole rookie class.”