“She\u2019s a generational player. She came with a fan base of millions, and it\u2019s helping the league<\/a>,”Lieberman said.<\/p>\n “They don\u2019t get the $2.2 billion collective bargaining agreement, honestly, without her being there.”<\/p>\n CLICK HERE FOR MORE SPORTS COVERAGE ON FOXNEWS.COM<\/a><\/p>\n Women’s basketball legend Nancy Lieberman said she would have punched Chennedy Clark in the face if she were Caitlin Clark. (Getty Images)<\/p>\n That recent surge in attention has helped change the financial future of the WNBA.<\/p>\n The WNBA and the Women\u2019s National Basketball Players Association reached a tentative new collective bargaining agreement in March. The deal delivers major salary increases, a larger salary cap and more player benefits.<\/p>\n The new WNBA CBA is a transformative seven-year labor deal establishing the first-ever revenue-sharing model (averaging 20% of league and team revenue). It nearly quintuples the team salary cap and introduces sweeping upgrades to player benefits, family planning<\/a> and facility standard<\/p>\n Lieberman said Clark\u2019s arrival helped push the league into a new era.<\/p>\n “You can\u2019t deny she brings the media,” Lieberman said. “You\u2019re talking about her. You probably weren\u2019t talking about anybody four years ago.”<\/p>\n Lieberman compared Clark\u2019s effect on the WNBA to that of Michael Jordan<\/a> and Tiger Woods on their respective sports.<\/p>\n “She\u2019s done her job, just like Tiger did, just like Michael Jordan did,” Lieberman said.<\/p>\n FEVER’S LEXIE HULL SPEAKS OUT AGAINST ATTACKS ON PLAYERS AS TEAM’S POPULARITY GROWS DURING CAITLIN CLARK ERA<\/a><\/p>\n Clark entered the WNBA in<\/a> 2024 after a record-setting college career at Iowa. She brought massive television audiences, sold-out arenas and a national conversation that followed her from college into the pros.<\/p>\n Lieberman said that kind of attention does not take away from the rest of the league. It helps expose more fans to everyone.<\/p>\n “Now, you take A\u2019ja, you take Napheesa, you take Stewie, you take Kelsey Plum, and you take Sabrina, and all these other great athletes, and now you put them together \u2014 that\u2019s very formidable,” Lieberman said.<\/p>\n “These young players that are coming into the league have this incredible fan base,” Lieberman added. “They were making millions of dollars in college with their NILs, so they just brought that to the league…<\/p>\n “We shouldn\u2019t be jealous of them,” Lieberman said. “We should celebrate them, not tolerate them<\/a>.”<\/p>\n Clark’s Indiana Fever are off to a surprisingly underwhelming start to the 2026 season amid championship expectations after how close the team got last year.<\/p>\n ZERO BS. JUST DAKICH. TAKE THE DON’T @ ME PODCAST ON THE ROAD. DOWNLOAD NOW!<\/a><\/p>\n In 2025, the Fever came one game shy of reaching the WNBA Finals, all while Clark was sidelined<\/a> with injury. But so far Indiana is off to just a 6-5 start this year, while Clark has seen a seeming decline in shooting accuracy.<\/p>\n But Lieberman believes the Fever will be “fine” as the season develops. Lieberman said teams now circle Fever games the way players once circled matchups with Michael Jordan.<\/p>\n “You see the schedule and you get amped up for the Fever because you\u2019re dealing with some of the most famous players in the<\/a> league,” Lieberman said.<\/p>\n![\"Nancy](\"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/Caitlin-Clark-Nancy-Lieberman.png\")
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