Caitlin Clark is 21 and chasing immortality

She is the reigning Associated Press women's college basketball player of the year. She is the reigning Naismith women's college basketball player of the year. She is the reigning unanimous women's college basketball player of the year. She is the future of the sport and its present.

She is also 21.

This story is about Caitlin Clark and also about being 21. 21 is a magical age. If you are a woman and an athlete, it is the age you become a man. If you are a man, it is a bit later. It is the age when your body becomes your greatest ally. A 21-year-old body is a miracle of bones and muscles and intuition. A 21-year-old woman's body, in particular, is a miracle of life and growth and, if you're lucky, you figure out that it can be a weapon, too. A 21-year-old man's body is still growing, no matter how grown it feels. It is still filling out like a great oak tree, branches heavy with thick leaves. A 21-year-old man is still learning how to make his body his greatest ally. At 21, a man is still growing toward adulthood while a 21-year-old woman has arrived.

Caitlin Clark is 21 and chasing immortality. She is also a woman, not a man. She is also a person, not a commodity. She is also a machine, in the way that few people can imagine. She is a machine built in the image of herself. She is a machine fueled by her own dreams and ambitions. She is a machine that does not break down. She is a machine that does not stop. She is a machine that does not know how to be silent. She is a machine that does not know how to be denied. She is a machine that does not know how to be doubted.

I am a journalist. I am a sportswriter. I have seen Caitlin Clark play basketball and I have seen her interviewed after basketball games. I have seen her speak and I have seen her silent. I have seen her joyful and I have seen her sullen. I have seen her smile and I have seen her frown. I have seen her online and I have seen her in person. I have seen her on the stage and I have seen her in the spotlight. I have seen her in the moment and I have seen her reflect. I have seen her with a basketball in her hands and I have seen her with a microphone in her hands. I have seen her with people around her and I have seen her alone. I have seen her in the moment and I have seen her reflect.

Caitlin Clark is 21. She is a woman. She is a person. She is a machine. She is also an athlete. She is an athlete of the highest order. She is a superstar. She is a celebrity. She is a phenomenon. She is a phenom. She is a once-in-a-generation talent. She is a once-in-a-lifetime player. She is a player that comes along once in a century. She is a player that comes along once in a millennium. She is a player that comes along once in a lifetime. She is a player that comes along once in a century. She is a player that comes along once in a millennium. She is a player that comes along once in a lifetime.

Caitlin Clark is 21. She is a woman. She is a person. She is a machine. She is an athlete. She is a superstar. She is a celebrity. She is a phenomenon. She is a phenom. She is a once-in-a-generation talent. She is a once-in-a-lifetime player. She is a player that comes along once in a century. She is a player that comes along once in a millennium. She is a player that comes along once in a lifetime. She is a player that comes along once in a century. She is a player that comes along once in a millennium.

Caitlin Clark is 21. She is a woman. She is a person. She is a machine. She is an athlete. She is a superstar. She is a celebrity. She is a phenomenon. She is a phenom. She is a once-in-a-generation talent. She is a once-in-a-lifetime player.