Caitlin Clark’s controversial NBA decision

The NBA has opened up their All-Star weekend festivities to WNBA stars in the past, and the league would’ve loved to see Indiana Fever superstar Caitlin Clark participate. However, the WNBA’s brightest star has turned down an offer to appear, which has drawn reaction from different parts of the sports world.

During 2024’s NBA All-Star weekend, Golden State Warriors star Stephen Curry squared off with New York Liberty star Sabrina Ionescu in a three-point competition. Ionescu performed extremely well, and came within a hair of defeating Curry in the event. New York’s prodigy shot from the NBA three-point line as well.

It was such a popular draw that the NBA wanted to do it again in 2025, with the All-Star game being held in San Francisco. It’s unclear whether Curry would have participated again, but the NBA wanted Clark to be there in some form or fashion.

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Clark’s representatives at Excel Sports confirmed to NBC News and other outlets that their client would not be playing at 2025 NBA All-Star weekend. Her decision seems to follow a pattern she’s established in recent months.

Clark also notably declined to play in Unrivaled, a three-on-three basketball league founded by WNBA stars Breanna Stewart and Napheesa Collier. The games take place during a nine-week stretch of the WNBA offseason from January through March. Unrivaled prepared a lucrative offer for her, but her answer remained firm.

As Marca and others reported, Unrivaled would have given Clark $1 million to play, and equity in the league. While many other WNBA players chased the higher payday during the offseason, Clark’s decision-making wasn’t driven by money. The Fever superstar wanted some time off.

Considering the whirlwind of events Clark had to deal with in 2024, her desire to rest and recharge is understandable. She went from leading the University of Iowa deep into a March Madness run in the spring, to being drafted by the WNBA a couple of weeks later, to starting a WNBA season a month after that. There was rarely any time to catch her breath, except for possibly the Olympic break.

As a result, Clark’s decision to skip NBA All-Star weekend stays consistent with the offseason plan she’s had all along. Granted, the competition is a one and done event, but Clark would have had to train for the spectacle, which may have thrown her plans off.

Fellow WNBA star Cameron Brink believes Clark made the right call. She said on her podcast, “She needs a break. I’m like texting her, I’m like ‘you need take a vacation for three months.’ I’m like ‘you don’t need to have the stress of that again because it’s just going to be a whole debacle.’”

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Brink also believes that Clark is more popular than many NBA players. She said, “I was at the Paris games and we went out with the Pacers after one of their games. We were having this debate, who’s hotter right now, Caitlin or some other NBA players. Then I remember Tyrese Haliburton jumping in, saying ‘when I’m with Caitlin, people give me the phone to take a picture with me of Catlin and them, like Tyrese who?’”

There’s another reason why Clark doesn’t want to participate at 2025 NBA All Star weekend. Excel Sports told the Indianapolis Recorder and others, “Caitlin will not be at NBA All-Star weekend. She wants her first three-point contest to be at WNBA All-Star in Indianapolis.”

Fans won’t have to wait too long for that, as Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis is hosting WNBA All-Star weekend in July 2025.

Clark would serve as a high-profile guest at NBA All-Star weekend, but she would be the master of ceremonies during WNBA All-Star weekend in Indianapolis. Postponing the moment allows for anticipation to build over the next several months.

Clark also passed on participating in the WNBA’s three-point shootout during 2024 All-Star weekend. She told Sportico, “It’s not an easy thing to just show up to and shoot off of a rack. There’s going to be plenty of opportunities for me to do that at some point.”

As reported by Sportico and others, the winner of the WNBA’s three-point competition receives $2,575. That’s not much compared to the prize the NBA’s three-point shooter receives, which is $50,000 according to NBC Los Angeles.

Clark’s desire to do things in the order she wants has been made clear. It’ll be interesting to see if she decides to go up against an NBA player in a three-point competition down the line.

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