Before ever playing her first pro game, former Iowa Hawkeyes superstar rookie point guard Caitlin Clark, who was just selected with the No. 1 pick in this year’s highly-rated WNBA drafted by the Indiana Fever, has already drawn some superlative NBA comparisons by folks in the know.
All-Star Dallas Mavericks combo guard Luka Doncic weighed in on the six-footer’s ability to shoot the rock with some heady praise in particular, according to the Instagram of ESPN’s SportsCenter.
“That’s the women’s Steph Curry,” Doncic offered, comparing her impact to the current Golden State Warriors All-Star point guard. “She can shoot it better than me.”
Getty Images/Matthew Holst
Clark’s 201 made three-pointers represent an NCAA record for a woman or man. She is a far more frequent long-range sniper than Doncic, although Doncic’s conversion rate (38.2%) this season is marginally more efficient than Clark’s (37.8%). This season, Doncic, a five-time All-Star, is averaging 33.9 points on .487/.382/.786 shooting splits, 9.8 assists, 9.2 rebounds, 1.4 steals and 0.5 blocks a night. That 38.2% rate arrives on a whopping 10.6 triple tries a night, barely less than his 13 two-point tries.
In her 39 games played for the 34-5 Hawkeyes this past season, Clark averaged 31.6 points on .455/.378/.860 shooting splits, 8.9 assists, 7.4 rebounds, 1.7 steals and 0.5 blocks a night. Her 13.6 triple attempts far outpaced her 9.1 two-point tries.
Clark warped the floor around her in the college game, much like Curry before her. Like Clark, the 6-foot-3 Golden State superstar is such a prolific shooter from long range, while also being a lethal distributor, that he forces opposing defenses to stay up on him pretty much anywhere on the floor, which in turn opens up cutting and driving lanes.
At the collegiate level, Clark had a similar impact. Now that she’s been selected by the Fever, where she’ll suit up alongside 2023 No. 1 draft pick (and subsequent All-Star and Rookie of the Year) Aliyah Boston. Clark is looking to carry that momentum over to the pros, in much the same way Curry was able to bring over his excellent shooting from his Davidson days.
It seems like the world is ready to watch Clark’s next step. She recently signed a lucrative deal with Nike, where she is already getting a signature sneaker. Clark’s final college game, an 87-75 loss to fellow top draft pick Kamilla Cardoso and the rest of the 38-0 South Carolina Gamecocks, was the most-watched in women’s college hoops history. Exactly how much she’ll be able to affect winning for a team that finished 13-27 last year remains to be seen, but we’ll all be watching.
Uncommon Knowledge
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Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.