The Indiana Fever star, 22, broke records and barriers in her first WNBA season

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Caitlin Clark has been named Time‘s Athlete of the Year

Caitlin Clark is capping what she calls a “historic” first season in the WNBA — she’s been named Time’s Athlete of the Year!

The 22-year-old basketball phenom, who has broken both records and barriers in the sport, received the honor for her work on the court and off, where she directed a surge in attention and ratings to the 27-year-old league and to women’s sports never before seen, according to the magazine.

In an extensive interview with the publication, the athlete known for her logo 3s and expert passes offers her own perspective on her transformative accomplishments — and the consequences of being in the spotlight.

“I tell people I feel like the most controversial person,” Clark said. “But I am not. It’s just because of all the storylines that surround me. I literally try to live and treat everybody in the same exact respectful, kind way. It just confuses me at times.”

Through her first season with the Indiana Fever, who selected her with the No. 1 pick in the 2024 WNBA Draft in April, Clark has navigated her rookie year while receiving an unprecedented level of attention.

“You feel powerful,” Clark said, regarding how she has affected the game. “Instantly, everybody goes crazy. People are invested in the game, they love the game, and that’s what makes it so fun for me. These people aren’t supporting women’s sports to check a box. It’s going to be the new normal.”

As she helped make the WNBA rank as the fastest growing brand of 2024, and scored a record $28-million shoe deal with Nike, Clark’s popularity also opened a Pandora’s box of questions about race and how it’s perceived in sports.

Photographs by Cass Bird for TIME (@cassblackbird)

“I want to say I’ve earned every single thing, but as a White person, there is privilege,” Clark said. “A lot of those players in the league that have been really good have been Black players. This league has kind of been built on them.”

She continued, “The more we can appreciate that, highlight that, talk about that, and then continue to have brands and companies invest in those players that have made this league incredible, I think it’s very important. I have to continue to try to change that. The more we can elevate Black women, that’s going to be a beautiful thing.”

Clark also addressed her relationship with Chicago Sky star Angel Reese, and how the latter’s ring-taunting during the 2023 national championship game when LSU faced Iowa made for what she believes was unnecessary drama afterwards.

“I don’t get that at all,” Clark said. “We’re not best friends, by any means, but we’re very respectful of one another. Yes, we have had tremendous battles. But when have I ever guarded her? And when has she guarded me?”

Clark added, “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.”

Elsewhere in the story, Clark’s friends and teammates called attention to her charisma and seldom-talked-about sense of humor.

The star is comfortable in the spotlight, her former Fever teammate Temi Fagbenle said, as was evidenced when she was required to sing “Happy Birthday” to teammates this year due to her rookie status.

“She wouldn’t just sing a regular happy birthday,” Fagbenle said. “It would be a grandiose performance. She loves her moments.”