Caitlin Clark poised to humble WNBA’s ‘greatest player’ just months after mentor offer
Caitlin Clark has broken another WNBA record in her rookie season while closing in on one set by Sabrina Ionescu after she was offered to be 'mentored' by her after her struggles to begin the year
Caitlin Clark registered another triple-double becoming the first ever in WNBA history to record one – doing it twice – while closing in on a record set by Sabrina Ionescu last season.
As well as her registering another triple-double, Clark scored her 100th three-point shot this season, becoming just the sixth woman to do so and first in her rookie season. She now has 102 on the season, being 19 away from Diana Taurasi in second place and 26 away from Ionescu.
After starting her season somewhat slowly to begin her rookie campaign, with the Indiana Fever winning just one their first eight games, Clark seriously turned it on from that point and has never looked back. She is now looking to lead the team, who have had the worst record in the league for consecutive seasons, to a winning record and a place in the playoffs while being a shoe-in for the Rookie of the Year award.
To begin the season, this is something that didn’t look too promising with Clark taking some time to adjust to the game, with Ionescu reportedly suggesting she could ‘mentor’ her – a comment which many found peculiar at the time.
In June as the Liberty’s 104-68 blewout the Fever on Sunday, one of New York’s commentators on MY9, Ros Gold-Onwude revealed that Ionescu is ready for a mentorship role with Clark. “She’s spoken with Caitlin and actually, Sabrina told me that during the season, it’s a little hard because they’re playing against each other,” Gold-Onwude shared.
“But post-season, the door is very much open and Caitlin knows she can hit Sabrina anytime to talk with her. She does see herself as somebody whose path could be similar and actually told me when she came in, she felt a little isolated. That there weren’t vets who necessarily took her under her wing and became her OG.”
Three months on, Clark is now not only closing in on a record set by Ionescu, but is also above her in the odds for regular season MVP award.
Clark also looks set to pass Taurasi’s previous three-point record, who Ionescu had suggested is the ‘greatest ever player’, last year. Ionescu said of Taurasi after passing her three-point record: “It’s an honor, any time you’re able to pass arguably the greatest basketball player that ever played in the WNBA.”