Caitlin Clark is named TIME Magazine's Athlete of the Year

It is pretty clear how much of an impact Fever rookie Caitlin Clark has on the sport of women's basketball.

It feels like we do it far too often, but let's run down the accolades:

She broke the record for the most points in Division I basketball history. Not women's basketball, Division I basketball. She led her Iowa Hawkeyes to the program's second-straight Final Four, and second-straight championship game. The Sweet Sixteen, Final Four, and Championship games in 2024 are the highest, second-highest, and third-highest viewed NCAA women's basketball games in the sports history.

She was drafted with the first overall pick in the 2024 WNBA Draft, facing a mountain of expectations. She became an All-Star in her first season. She finished in the top-10 in the league in scoring and led the league with 8.4 assists per game, the fifth-best season in WNBA history in that category. And, of course, she was named the WNBA Rookie of the Year.

Another thing to note: These are only the accomplishments that Caitlin Clark was able to achieve in one calendar year. Now, she can add another accolade.

Clark is honored as TIME Magazine's Athlete of the Year

TIME Magazine has named an Athlete of the Year since 2019. Clark was named 2024's honoree on Tuesday, joining Simone Biles and the 2019 U.S. Women's Soccer Team as the only women with the award. The other honorees include Yankees outfielder Aaron Judge, soccer legend Lionel Messi, and one of the greatest basketball players to ever touch the court-- LeBron James.

TIME's website estimates the article as a 34-minute read, taking the reader through a workout Clark had with author Sean Gregory in attendance (where she reportedly hit 93 three-pointers in six minutes at an 85% clip), the journey to play for the Iowa Hawkeyes, the Angel Reese "feud," and more throughout the entire article.

In regards to Angel Reese, Clark stays consistent with what she has said all along: No hard feelings.

"We're not best friends, by any means, but we're very respectful to one another," siad Clark, in the article. "The only thing people cared about was this controversy that was really fabricated and made up, and then that has continued to be the case ever since."

While Clark has been a pretty tough interview over the past year with the increased media attention, TIME shines a light on the personal life of the rookie sensation. The article includes Clark's budding friendship with Taylor Swift, her appearance on Saturday Night Live, and her Olympic team debacle, ultimately not being selected to be on the team. Clark said in the article that she had to come to peace with it.

"A point everybody was making was like, 'Who are you taking off the team?' And that was a tremendous point," said Clark. "I gave them a lot of reasons to keep me off the team with my play."

The article is a phenomenal read, which you can access here.

Clark has been the recipient of a couple of honors this week, also being named onto the Forbes 30 Under 30 list. Her impact on the sport, and on society as a whole, has been felt for the past two years.

She's finally getting the recognition she deserves for it.