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The WNBA’s ratings have gone in the tank without Caitlin Clark.
The superstar Fever guard has been out since May 24 with a strained left quad, and since then, nationally televised games are down 55 percent in viewership, per USA Today.
The Fever’s nationally televised games are down 53 percent — averaging 1,810,000 viewers with Clark compared to 847,000 without her.
Clark had previously played 183 straight regular season and postseason games across four years at Iowa and all 40 regular season games and two playoff games last year with the Fever.
In four games this year before her injury, Clark averaged 19.0 points, 9.3 assists and 6.0 rebounds per game.
The Fever have played five games without Clark, in which they went 2-3.
They sit at 4-5 for the season.
“We’re going to be smart, and we’re going to be cautious and we’re going to play the long game and work her back in very intentionally,” head coach Stephanie White recently said about Clark’s recovery.
Clark’s popularity has helped the WNBA reach unprecedented levels of viewership since she entered the league last year.
The Fever’s clash against Angel Reese and the Sky to open the season reached an average of 2.7 million viewers, making it the most-watched WNBA regular season game in 25 years.
That number decreased to 1.92 million for their second matchup on Saturday, when Clark was sidelined with her injury.
