New WNBA GM Survey Reveals What League Really Thinks About Caitlin Clark

The results of the 2026 survey were pretty eye-opening.

The 2026 WNBA GM survey revealed how general managers across the league value Indiana Fever superstar Caitlin Clark. | Grace Smith/IndyStar / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The WNBA recently released this year’s general manager survey in which they polled front office leaders about best players, teams and offseason moves, among other topics. As to be expected, Indiana Fever superstar Caitlin Clark cracked the list. What was less expected, however, was where exactly Clark landed on said list.

Clark played just 13 regular season games last season due to nagging groin and quad injuries, which would explain why some GMs didn’t rate her that high when it came to projected league MVP or best overall point guard. Four-time MVP A’ja Wilson and Liberty veteran Breanna Stewart received the most MVP votes (followed by Clark and Dream’s Allisha Gray); Aces’ Chelsea Gray received the lion’s share of votes when it came to the W’s best point guard (73% of votes), while Clark got just 20%. Clark and Gray had split the votes evenly in last year’s GM survey.

Clark also far trailed Gray when GMs were polled on which player was the best passer in the league (Gray had 93% to Clark’s 7%).

WNBA GMs would choose Paige Bueckers over Caitlin Clark to build a franchise

But where things get much dicier is when GMs were asked this question: “If you were starting a franchise today and could sign any player in the WNBA, who would it be?” The top answer was a recent No. 1 pick—but not Clark. It was Wings’ Paige Bueckers, the reigning Rookie of the Year. Bueckers placed first with 33% of votes, followed by Clark and Wilson, who each had 20%. Storm’s Dominique Malonga, Lynx’s Napheesa Collier and Stewart also received votes.

For Clark, this is a sharp drop-off from the 50% of votes she accrued in ‘25 after her record-breaking rookie campaign.

Could Clark actually be... underrated heading into her Year 3 season? It’s one thing to knock her down a few pegs given that she hasn’t played in a WNBA regular season game since last July, but it’s another thing altogether to no longer consider her as significant a franchise-altering star as, say, Bueckers.

Clark faced off against Bueckers as recently as last month in a Fever-Wings preseason tilt in which both former No. 1 picks impressed on the court. Even though it was just an exhibition game, both stars put their biggest strengths on display: for Clark, her three-point shooting and court vision; for Bueckers, her mid-range game and otherwise extremely well-rounded skillset.

Both Clark and Bueckers are without a doubt the cornerstone pieces of their respective franchises and could oppose each other in future all-time great rivalries in the years to come. But when it comes to global star power, it’s hard to imagine Bueckers making the same meteoric impact in viewership ratings and exposure to the sport as Clark has in the last two years, also known as the Caitlin Clark effect.

Clearly, some WNBA GMs see things differently, though.

Is Caitlin Clark underrated? All the categories in which she was snubbed in 2026 WNBA GM survey

Here are the other categories in the 2026 WNBA GM survey in which Clark was omitted.

Which player is the best leader? A’ja Wilson dominated the votes (79%), with others like Collier and Stewart also earning nods.

Which player has the best basketball IQ? Chelsea Gray received a whopping 93%, followed by Stewart.

Which player would you want taking a shot with the game on the line? Wilson and Gray were tied for first (36%), followed by Jackie Young, Arike Ogunbowale and Bueckers.

This is hardly the first time Clark has been slept on in the WNBA. One needs only go back to the middle of Clark’s rookie year when the Fever guard was left off of Team USA’s roster for the 2024 Paris Olympics. Before that, Clark also received a blunt message from WNBA legend Diana Taurasi, who told the then-incoming rook that “reality is coming.”

Yet for most of Clark’s career, it’s not about how often she gets underestimated. It’s about how she responds. Following her Olympic snub and Taurasi’s warning shot, Clark went on to put together arguably the greatest rookie season in the WNBA. Bueckers came close in ‘25, but the Wings shooting guard still lags behind when it comes to assists and elite playmaking talent.

We, for one, can’t wait to see how Clark uses the latest survey results as fuel on top of her fire to prove all her doubters wrong—again and again and again.

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