Indiana Fever guard Caitlin Clark had a stellar performance against the Dallas Wings to clinch a double-double of 24 points and 19 assists. Furthermore, this feat says a lot about the Fever’s rookie as she breaks a WNBA historical record again. Also, The 22-year-old guard currently leads in assists per game after her game against the Wings.
However, the Indiana Fever, who is now 11-for-15 in 26 matches, lost against the Dallas Wings with an eight-point margin. This loss was due to Caitlin Clark’s weakness since her debut game with the Fever. Also, the guard has the most in that stat per game. Thus, what’s the major weakness of this star rookie?
Caitlin Clark Beats Sue Bird’s Record
In the year Caitlin Clark was born, Sue Bird, the Seattle Storm legend, got drafted as the WNBA 2002 No. 1 overall draft pick. Thus, it should be safe to say Clark could be the second coming of this WNBA legend. Sue Bird played all 32 games in her rookie year and was one game away from being the fastest player to have 400+ points and 200+ assists. The veteran Storm guard achieved this feat in her 2003 season with the franchise when she became the third player in WNBA history to amass more than 200 assists in a season (221).
Fast forward to 22 years later, Caitlin Clark, the WNBA 2024 No. 1 overall draft pick, constantly improved her performance as a rookie player and made WNBA History. After playing against the Dallas Wings, the 6-foot guard became the fastest WNBA player to score 400 points and 200 assists in 26 games since 2003. Thus, Clark beat Sue Bird’s record (33) by seven games. Also, this achievement is just one of many as she makes more WNBA History by clinching a career-high of 19 assists in a single game. Currently, the Fever guard is averaging 17.1 points, 8.2 assists, 5.8 rebounds, and 1.5 steals in 26 games while making 40.5% in field goals and 32.7% in three-pointers.
Clark’s Weakness – Why The Fever Lost Against The Wings
The Indiana Fever played the Dallas Wings at the College Park Center. It was a competitive game as the Fever team was the favorite to win this match. However, due to Clark’s weakness, her team lost the game (93-101). Since her debut with the team, Clark struggled with making fewer turnovers despite having an incredible record as a playmaker.
During the last minutes of the game against the Dallas Wings, the rookie committed late turnovers that gave the Wings team an offensive advantage to win the game despite being tied in the final quarter (93-93). Also, the Fever guard currently has 5.6 turnovers per game which makes her the WNBA league leader in that section. Furthermore, Clark acknowledged this setback in her post-match interview:
The late turnover definitely kills for sure. It’s a fine line if they’re up pressuring me so I kind of got behind them and was able to attack and then I tried to pull it out and kind of lost my handle while getting poked from behind. It’s really hard to win a game once it becomes three possessions and (at) that point we had it at two.
Will Clark Win The WNBA ROTY Award?
Yes, she should win the WNBA 2024 Rookie of the Year award. You might be wondering why; and this can be answered by not only her assist stats, but also her rebounding stats. She has been a great addition to the Fever’s defenisve rebounding.
Defensive rebounds should give a team the offensive advantage to make points and lead in the game. However, if players don’t set up their team, grabbing defensive rebounds could lead to nothing on the other end. Also, the end goal in basketball is to score points through offense and win the game.
Though Caitlin Clark struggles with turnovers, her ability to convert defensive rebounds into assists gives her team an offensive advantage in the transition. This point is evident in her match against New York Liberty where she got a triple-double performance. Since then, the 22-year-old guard has had sprinkles of double-doubles in her recent matches in points and assists.
Clark’s Leadership On The Court
Basketball is a team sport. Thus, Clark displays her leadership and playmaking skills by setting up her teams to make double-digit scores and career highs, especially Aliyah Boston. Furthermore, the Fever guard continues to improve her game and break records in the WNBA. Finally, the Indiana Fever team improved massively after finishing poorly in the past, thanks to Caitlin Clark’s impressive performance as a rookie. Also, the Fever guard might end up being the face of this League.
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