Caitlin Clark has generated an unprecedented amount of interest in the WNBA and women’s basketball in general, and she may only be scratching the surface of her vast potential as a player. Along the way, she has developed something of a friendship with Los Angeles Lakers superstar LeBron James.
She was at a recent game between the Lakers and the Indiana Pacers, and she took photos of James and later said that he is her “G.O.A.T. (greatest of all time)”. When Clark’s 2025 season prematurely ended due to a groin injury, James sent her some words of encouragement on social media.
She recently sat down for an interview with Malika Andrews of ESPN and went into more detail about her friendship with the NBA’s all-time leading scorer.
“I mean, I think LeBron has just been there to support me more than anything,” Clark said. “He understands the microscope that I’m under and the spotlight that’s on me and I think he just wants to be there for me more than anything.
“When I was hurt last year, he reached out and was like, ‘Is there any way I can help you? Like, is there anybody I can connect you with?’ Just somebody that’s there trying to help you, trying to help make the game better, help you improve. I think that’s a lot of our relationship now.”
Clark also admitted that she wants to dabble in the game of golf with James, a sport he recently picked up.
“… and then a little bit of golf too. We text about golf, so that’s next on our bucket list, is to play golf together. I’m not sure either of us are too great, so we might be chasing the ball a lot.”
If anyone in the NBA would know first-hand what it is like to deal with the kind of hype that has been generated for Clark, it is James. Perhaps no one in the history of the sport had to deal with greater hype or expectations than him, and other than his 4-6 NBA Finals record, he has lived up to that hype.
Clark’s Indiana Fever will kick off their 2026 regular-season schedule on Saturday against Paige Bueckers and the Dallas Wings. The Fever are opening up the year as one of the favorites to win the WNBA championship thanks to the supporting players they have accumulated over the past couple of years, including Aliyah Boston and Kelsey Mitchell.
This article originally appeared on LeBron Wire: Caitlin Clark details her friendship with LeBron James
Reporting by Robert Marvi, LeBron Wire / LeBron Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
