Indiana Fever On SI

Lisa Leslie Lauds Caitlin Clark's 'Amazing Impact' Ahead of Fever 2025 WNBA Season

Lisa Leslie spoke extremely highly of Caitlin Clark before the Indiana Fever's first WNBA preseason game.
Grant Young|
Aug 11, 2024; Paris, France; Lisa Leslie looks on before the women's gold medal game between France and the United States during the Paris 2024 Olympic Summer Games at Accor Arena. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-Imagn Images
Aug 11, 2024; Paris, France; Lisa Leslie looks on before the women's gold medal game between France and the United States during the Paris 2024 Olympic Summer Games at Accor Arena. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-Imagn Images | Kyle Terada-Imagn Images

It's truly staggering to consider just how many fans Caitlin Clark has not only brought to the Indiana Fever but the entire sport of women's basketball.

Then again, it isn't just those who are relatively new to the game or the WNBA that are in awe of Clark. WNBA legend Lisa Leslie spoke extremely highly of the 23-year-old superstar during a May 2 interview with Women's Fastbreak on SI, and also discussed how the Fever will fare this season.

"Let me just say, Caitlin Clark has had an amazing impact on the WNBA. Her ability to come out and play, especially after her college season. And then to come into the WNBA and just really have the effect that she did, it was really outstanding. I was so proud of Caitlin," Leslie said.

"So when you talk about Caitlin in her sophomore year, she's more seasoned, she has had time to rest. She's had time to really regroup and see exactly where she wants to go. Obviously, [the Fever] have a ton of new players, a new coach. And that also builds a lot of pressure. It is so hard to win. It's not easy to win the first year that you get a new coach, new teammates, and you're trying to build this chemistry. I don't want to put too much pressure. I think the Indiana Fever, as far as on paper, looks amazing. Now they've got to put it all together.

"And they can, possibly. I'm not saying they can't. The All-Star Game is there in Indiana. Everything is laid out," she continued. "Caitlin has had time to really process what the WNBA looks like, what it feels like. And it's going to be exciting, so I'm sure fans will tune in. Everything's already sold out. And some teams, when Caitlin comes to town, they've already had to get into larger arenas. So all of those things about the Caitlin Clark effect are true."

Leslie then added, "It's amazing, I've missed watching [Caitlin] play... It'll be great to see her back out on the floor and what this new team looks like. Don't sleep on Kelsey Mitchell, because she's also an amazing baller. I mean, [Caitlin] has some really good teammates around her. She has veterans there now. So it'll be really interesting to see what the Indiana Fever look like."

Leslie will clearly be tuned in along with the rest of the women's basketball world to see how far Clark can take the Fever.

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Grant Young
GRANT YOUNG

Grant Young covers Women’s Basketball, the Indiana Fever and the New York Mets for Sports Illustrated’s ‘On SI’ sites. He holds an MFA degree in creative writing from the University of San Francisco (USF), where he also graduated with a Bachelor’s Degree in Marketing and played on USF’s Division I baseball team for five years. However, he now prefers Angel Reese to Angels in the Outfield.

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