Caitlin Clark finished fourth in WNBA MVP voting. The full ballot tells a more interesting story than the placement suggests.<\/p>\n
The award is decided by a panel of sportswriters and broadcasters across the country, each ranking their top five players. First-place votes are worth 10 points, then seven, five, three and one down the ballot. When the points were tallied, Las Vegas star A’ja Wilson ran away with her record fifth MVP \u2014 her third straight \u2014 collecting 65 first-place votes and nine second-place votes for 713 total points.<\/p>\n
Behind her, the order raised eyebrows. Minnesota Lynx rookie Olivia Miles finished second, while Indiana’s Kelsey Mitchell took third with 287 points. Clark landed fourth with 212 points \u2014 built from one first-place vote, six second-place votes, 20 third-place votes, 16 fourth-place votes and 12 fifth-place votes.<\/p>\n
One voter, somewhere, looked at the entire 2026 season and decided Clark was the most valuable player in the league. Given what she did, it is not hard to see why someone made that case.<\/p>\n
Clark posted career highs across the board: 22.3 points per game on 44.5 percent shooting from the field and 36.1 percent from three, plus 4.0 rebounds, 8.3 assists and 1.1 steals. She led the Fever to a franchise-best 28-win season \u2014 the kind of leap that usually gets a player more than a single first-place vote.<\/p>\n
The context around her finish matters too. Wilson’s season (26.2 points, 9.4 rebounds, 3.2 assists, 1.4 steals, 1.9 blocks) was historically dominant, and a rookie finishing second is a story in itself. But Clark outscoring her own previous bests while dragging Indiana to its best season ever \u2014 and still landing behind her own backcourt mate \u2014 will fuel the debate all winter.<\/p>\n
It also sets up the offseason stakes. Clark is eligible for the EPIC extension provision that could pay her a projected $1.3 million in 2027, and the Fever’s top priority is re-signing Mitchell, the teammate who finished one spot ahead of her on the MVP ballot. Indiana’s two best players finished third and fourth in the MVP race, and the franchise’s entire winter is about keeping them together.<\/p>\n
Fourth place, one first-place vote, and a career year. Clark’s 2026 was the kind of season that makes you wonder what the ceiling actually is.<\/p>\n
Sources: Athlon Sports (Oct 9, 2026). Voting totals and stats as reported.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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