JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — March 31, 2023, I was sharing a hotel room with my parents. I’ve been a huge women’s basketball fan for a long, long time, after one of my best high school friends went to play for Muffet McGraw at Notre Dame. I’d tried throughout the years to get my family into it. Never stuck. My parents had long turned the lights out in the room – I turned on the game anyway.
If you’re an Iowa fan, you remember that night. And you probably know what happened next. Iowa ended South Carolina’s season-long undefeated streak, and Caitlin racked up 41 points.
Anyway, the buzzer sounded. I hadn’t heard from my dad in awhile, and I figured he’d fallen asleep. Then I hear him in the dark, saying: “That was amazing.”
After that, all he wanted to know was when we could see Caitlin play again. I live across the country from my parents, but we watched every single game this season and texted throughout. We talked about the team on the phone constantly. He texted me the date, time and channel for every game. The Hawkeyes became our people: We rooted for Hannah Stuelke, Kate Martin and Gabbie Marshall just as much as Caitlin.
After the Hawkeyes lost to South Carolina last week, everyone wanted to know: Is, or isn’t, Caitlin the GOAT? Does it matter that she doesn’t have a championship under her belt? Does her title have to be earned in the WNBA, or is her college career, where she broke virtually every record available, enough?
I've marinated on it a lot, and I've started to think none of that really matters. What matters is that people remember her, and how they remember her. What matters is what the people whose lives she touched think.
So I brought one of those people to talk about it: My dad, Ted, Caitlin's biggest fan. (My first time interviewing him, by the way, and he did a great job.)
Here’s the conclusion we came to: Even if you forget that Dawn Staley proclaimed Caitlin “one of" the greatests of all time, even if you forget every record she set, or even if someone else beats every record one day, Caitlin is still going to be the greatest.
What was it about Caitlin that made my dad love her in the first place? Her style, mostly, which he called her “flare for the dramatic.” The logo 3’s, of course. The seemingly-impossible passes.
But it was also her joy, and her love for her teammates. The assists. “She’s enabling her teammates too, so that’s kind of cool. It’s kind of different,” he told me. He particularly loved her bond with Kate Martin and Gabbie Marshall, who have started a record number of games together.
It was the feeling of watching the underdog come from behind, Caitlin saving the day with a buzzer beater or a logo 3. It was watching the little guy win, over and over again.
And overall, it was the gift she gave us. “We could watch it together, and share the whole thing, and have something that we could talk about… That’s probably the first thing. That’s probably the number one thing.”
Just before I hit send on this article, my dad texted me a follow-up: “The number one reason I watched CC was to have something you and I could share together.”
It’s the number one thing for me, too. It’s something stats can’t ever trump. That’s what she gave us, and what she gave so many other people.
Just look into the stands at an Iowa game, or search Caitlin’s name on any social media. She had everyone from toddlers to grandparents getting her jersey for Christmas. Children in elementary school classrooms were watching those games, knowing every player by name. Little girls and boys chased Caitlin for her autograph after every game. And he won’t like my adding this, but my dad was 73 when Caitlin made him fall in love with women’s hoops.
Ted said it best: “She's good. She's great. And she's got all the skills and all that and she set all the records. But the most remarkable thing is that she made people watch.”
On Wednesday, the University of Iowa announced they would be retiring #22, honoring Caitlin Clark’s legacy. The billboards at Carver Hawkeye Arena were lit up with a picture of Caitlin, reading: “There will never be another.” And for everyone who grew to love the game because of her, there won’t be.
Caitlin has always said there will be a day where people won’t remember the score of a game, or how many logo 3’s she shot. Before the Final Four, she told reporters: “I hope they remember how we made them feel, how we brought joy to their lives, how we gave their families something to scream about on the TV on the weekends. I hope those are the biggest things people remember.”
So I asked my dad: In 10 years, for example, will he remember it was Caitlin that got him started? His answer: Of course.
As CC requested: We’re going to remember the joy.
When Caitlin announced she was declaring for the draft, I cried. I was convinced that this beautiful thing we had bonded over was ending. My dad told me, “It isn’t time to say goodbye. She’s just putting on a different jersey.”
He’s right. It may not be time to say goodbye. But it is time to say thank you. To the greatest of our time: Thank you from us, and every family like ours. To us, you will always be the spark.
Here’s what Ted wanted to say: “Thank you for all the joy and fun that you’ve provided, and I hope you never forget where you came from.”
I don’t think anyone is going to forget, #22.
