Caitlin Clark is finding her footing as not only a scoring weapon but a well-rounded offensive threat as she navigated a three-game stretch with the Indiana Fever this week.
The first of the week’s two wins for the Fever came against the brutal Washington Mystics, 88-81, on June 19. Clark stretched an efficient scoring line of 18 points on 6-of-12 from the field, 2-of-6 from deep, and 4-of-4 from the charity stripe in 37 minutes of play.
But more importantly, she poured in six assists and 12 rebounds while nicking four steals on the other end of the floor to produce even more opportunities on offense. Evidently, Clark is dispelling any concerns of one-sided play as she brings her whole arsenal from Iowa City over to Indianapolis.
Still, with that continue her turnover woes — six of them in the win — that linger over any potential for perfection from the rookie. She’s averaging a league-high 5.6 of them per game, which is nearly two more than Alyssa Thomas in second.
On June 21, Clark and the Fever comfortably slipped by the Atlanta Dream, 91-79. There, Clark’s seven assists were again overshadowed by seven turnovers. But she compiled 16 points on 6-of-12 from the field and 4-of-8 from deep with four boards in 35 minutes to put a Band-Aid on the possession struggles.
The final game of the week came on June 23 in a rematch against the Chicago Sky, this time in the Windy City, where Angel Reese got her revenge in taking Clark down, 88-87.
In 40 minutes of play — yes, she did not leave the floor — Clark drilled five of her 11 attempts from the field, all of them threes, with two free throws for 17 points.
And she cleaned it up beyond her shot attempts, snagging six rebounds and dishing 13 assists with just five turnovers.
The Fever are currently a mediocre 7-11 overall, not bad considering a season’s start with loss after loss — but not good enough yet to make a run at the postseason.
The Iowa City Aces
Fellow rookie guard and ex-teammate Kate Martin is finding her own ground in the WNBA amid limited minutes with the back-to-back reigning champion Las Vegas Aces. She’s primarily been a role player off of the bench in the squad’s two wins this week.
Martin saw 10 minutes against the Seattle Storm in a 94-83 win on June 19, although she did not attempt a shot. Her one turnover was her only stat. She played eight minutes against the league-leading Connecticut Sun in an 85-74 win on June 21, this time scoring two points on two attempts and grabbing a board.
The first-year has not had a bad season by any means, but she will need to tap into her confidence and aggression from the Black and Gold days to boost the 8-6 overall Aces in a quest for a championship seemingly far from reach right now.
With her off of the bench comes former Naismith College Player of the Year Megan Gustafson, who missed one shot in three minutes against the Storm but logged five points, six rebounds, and one assist in 11 minutes against the Sun.