Caitlin Clark might have just nailed why NBA ratings are down

Clark, the Indiana Fever superstar, said on the New Heights podcast that fans simply don’t realize how good NBA players are.

By now, almost every sports fan has heard it: NBA ratings are down. The idea that fewer people are engaged in watching men’s professional basketball has been the subject of significant debate centered around several prevailing theories.

Some have blamed the significant increase in three-pointers across the league. Some think that media coverage of the actual product has gotten too negative. Many have maintained that a rise in player injuries — and stars’ unreliable availability — is to blame. Others have suggested that the league begin play on Christmas rather than in October in order to avoid such a heavy overlap with football.

Indiana Fever star Caitlin Clark, one of the biggest names in all of basketball, also wants to know the real reason why fewer people are tuning into the NBA. The near-unanimous Rookie of the Year said in a New Heights podcast appearance that she has been on the hunt to get to the bottom of why ratings are lower this season than in years past.

“I’ve been asking a lot of people about this, and why they think they’re down,” she said.

Clark has her own theory about why fewer people are watching the NBA this season, and when you think about it, it makes a lot of sense.

“Honestly, I feel like the average basketball fan doesn’t understand how good NBA players are, and they think it looks like they’re not trying,” Clark said. “I promise you they’re trying. They’re just, like, so good. That’s why it looks like they’re not trying.”

A common complaint has been that players don’t play as hard or as physical today as they used to — but that complaint oftentimes doesn’t take into account just how much better offensive players have gotten. Many NBA teams play four or five three-point shooters at once, so defenders cannot overplay drives the way that they used to.

Clark also acknowledged the theory that early-season basketball viewership simply suffers because of the sport it is up against — both college football and the NFL typically broadcast competing games in the first few months of the NBA season.

“It’s hard for me to put my finger on why it’s gone down. It’s also competing against football right now, so you have to take that into consideration. Football is America’s favorite thing.”

Unsurprisingly, Clark doesn’t see the record amount of three-point attempts across the NBA as a concern. She holds numerous three-point records herself, including the most three-pointers made in a single season by a single Division I basketball player, male or female. She also made more threes in her rookie season in the WNBA than any first-year player in league history.

“I love three-point shooting,” Clark said, adding she’d love to see the NBA add a four-point line.

Clark acknowledged the common complaints around the league’s physicality, pointing to how the evolution of basketball is simply a part of the game.

“Obviously, the physicality of the league has changed a lot,” Clark said. “I wasn’t around when it was a lot more physical. Maybe people want more beef and physicality, and people think it’s gone soft.”

“But, I think it’s also because the skill has just changed. That’s what’s great about basketball — it’s always evolving. It’s going to be different than when MJ played, it’s going to be different in 10 years than it is now.”