The WNBA named Indiana Fever guard Caitlin Clark the league’s Rookie of the Year for 2024, but it was not a unanimous decision.

Despite the fact that Clark broke the WNBA’s single-season assist record and rookie scoring record and became the first rookie in history to record a triple-double, only 66 of 67 voters chose her to win the award. The other voter chose Chicago Sky forward Angel Reese, Clark’s old rival.

Reese was a contender for honors behind Clark for the first few months of the season. However, her rookie campaign was cut short after she underwent season-ending surgery on her wrist on September 6 after suffering an injury.

Clark increased her lead in nearly every statistical category in the weeks leading up to and following Reese’s season end. Additionally, she led the Fever to the playoffs for the first time in eight years as the team’s top scorer.

Reese was just the third-leading scorer on a Chicago team that finished the season with a 13-27 record, third-worst in the league, and missed the playoffs for the first time since 2018.

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Caitlin Clark of the Indiana Fever, left, and Angel Reese of the Chicago Sky watch during the game at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis on June 1. (Jeff Haynes/NBAE via Getty Images)

The only statistic in which Reese had an edge over Clark was in terms of rebounds, with more than twice as many rebounds per game at 13.1, compared to Clark’s 5.7. Reese has a natural height advantage at 6-foot-1, compared to Clark at 6-foot-1.

But Clark had advantages in terms of points with 19.2 to Reese’s 13.6 per game, assists with 8.4 to Reese’s 1.9 and even blocks with 0.7 to Reese’s 0.5, despite the height disadvantage.

Like Clark, Reese also broke a historic WNBA single-season record during her rookie year, breaking the single-season rebounds record during a game against the Minnesota Lynx on September 2 with 418 on the year. But unlike Clark, Reese didn’t hold that record at the end of the season. Following Reese’s season-ending surgery, MVP A’ja Wilson broke Reese’s record in the final week of the season, when Wilson recorded her 419th rebound.

However, despite the statistical discrepancies between Clark and Reese, the Sky rookie had her passionate supporters pleading her case over Clark this year.

Former NBA All-Star Joakim Noah, a 6-foot-4 center who also specialized in rebounding and dominating in the paint, told Fox News Digital he would vote for Reese above Clark for Rookie of the Year when he had a say during an interview on NBA Night in the Emirates Suite at the US Open in early September.

INSIDE THE IMPACT OF CAITLIN CLARK AND ANGEL REESE ON MEN’S BASKETBALL

Chicago Sky forward Angel Reese looks on during the game against the Las Vegas Aces at Wintrust Arena in Chicago on August 25. (Kamil Krzaczynski-USA Today Sports)

“I’d say Angel Reese,” Noah said. “When I watch her play, she reminds me a lot of myself.”

In head-to-head matches this year, the Fever defeated the Sky three out of four times. In two of those games, Reese scored more points than Clark, while pulling down more rebounds than Clark in all four meetings. Clark registered more assists in all four meetings.

Reese’s height advantage over Clark has led to the Sky rookie having stronger finishes in the paint and some very physical blocks and block attempts. Some cases have also resulted in some harsh fouls against Reese due to her defense against Clark. In a game on June 16, Clark went in for a layup and Reese didn’t quite have the wingspan to block the shot, but got a flagrant 1 when she hit Clark in the head from above.

Reese’s reputation and personality, compared to Clark, have also gained a passionate following, albeit a smaller one than Clark’s if you look at attendance and TV ratings.

Rutgers freshman basketball player Ace Bailey, the nation’s No. 3 recruit this year, told Fox News Digital at his team’s media day on Sept. 24 that he would choose to ask Reese for advice instead of Clark if he could. talk to a women’s basketball player.

“I would probably talk to Angel Reese, especially about her competitiveness, what drives her,” Bailey said.

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Angel Reese of the LSU Lady Tigers gestures to Caitlin Clark of the Iowa Hawkeyes during the championship game of the NCAA Women’s Basketball Tournament at the American Airlines Center in Dallas on April 2, 2023. (Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)

Reese and Clark’s reputations, fan bases and longstanding rivalry are tied to their respective races dating back to their most famous meeting in the 2023 NCAA women’s national championship game. Reese and LSU defeated Clark and Iowa, and Reese pointed her finger to scoop in a viral moment that drew intense backlash and support.

Reese said it was a moment that “changed her life forever” during the first episode of her podcast “Unapolageically Angel,” when she accused Clark’s fans of racism, death threats and even sending explicit AI images of her to family members.

“I think it’s really just the fans, her fans, the Iowa fans, now the Indiana fans, who are really just driving for her, and I respect that with respect. But sometimes it’s very disrespectful. I think there is a lot. racism when it comes down to it,” Reese said.

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