NBA world rallies behind $818,000 NIL-valued Caitlin Clark as Iowa star creates history ft. Stephen Curry, Vanessa Bryant and more

Iowa's Carver-Hawkeye Arena did not have to wait long Thursday night as fan favorite Caitlin Clark broke the women's college basketball scoring record in just over two minutes to lead the Hawkeyes to a 106-89 win over Michigan.

In 37 minutes of action, Clark, who has an On3 NIL value of $818,000, finished with 49 points, five rebounds and 13 assists to claim the record in explosive fashion.

Afterward, the NBA world rallied behind the popular Clark and paid their tributes, led by Golden State Warriors shooter Stephen Curry, whom she has been compared to.

"Congrats @caitlinclark22," Curry wrote on Instagram

Next up was Vanessa Bryant, who tagged Caitlin Clark and Kobe Bryant in her Instagram stories.

"Congratulations," Bryant wrote.

Image via Instagram

Image via Instagram

Five-time NBA champion Magic Johnson also celebrated Caitlin Clark's record-breaking night with a post on X:

Meanwhile, Hall of Famer Shaquille O'Neal called Clark "the best female collegiate player ever."

Tributes to Caitlin Clark keep pouring in

The country seemed to be waiting with bated breath and watching as Caitlin Clark shredded defenses and relentlessly chased down Kelsey Plum's record.

Plum herself jumped the gun after Clark scored 31 points against the Nebraska Cornhuskers on Super Bowl Sunday and congratulated Clark before correcting herself for getting too excited.

"Congratulations on the record, and really your entire season!" Plum wrote. "I appreciate what you do for the game, much respect and love! See you at the next level, hopefully sooner than later."

"My bad next game," Plum later corrected herself.

When Caitlin Clark finally broke it against Michigan, the tributes poured in from within and outside the basketball world.

Long considered Clark's arch-rival because of how she led the LSU Tigers to a 102-85 win against the Iowa Hawkeyes in the national championship game, Angel Reese also posted her congratulations on X.

"Congratulations @CaitlinClark22 KEEP BREAKING RECORDS & MAKING HER-STORY!" Reese wrote.

Former U.S. President Barack Obama, who is a keen college basketball viewer, congratulated her on X:

"Congrats to @CaitlinClark22, the greatest scorer in the history of women’s college basketball! It's been fun watching you and the @IowaWBB team this season."

The Big Ten Network brought out a big gun for its favorite student-athlete, seven-time Super Bowl champion Tom Brady, in a tribute video.

"I just wanted to say congratulations on the record," Brady said. "Like the rest of the country, I’ve been following along as you chased down my girl Kelsey (Plum), but I know she’s proud of you too. We love witnessing greatness here. Keep your head down, go finish the job and I’ll be watching."

As she chases down Pistol Pete Maravich's record (3,669) set between 1967 and 1970 at LSU, the whole country will cheer Caitlin Clark on as she obliterates every long-standing record remaining in college basketball.