The 2024 WNBA season is only a few games underway, and already the hot takes are firing and the social media bait is prominent. It has truly been exhausting already.
Every day there seems to be a war on social media surrounding Indiana Fever rookie guard Caitlin Clark. Her existing haters have been waiting for her to come to the WNBA and not immediately take the league by storm. Some are trying to say she’s somehow already been exposed in the pros.
That sentiment is hilarious considering she’s been doing pretty well despite facing heavy pressure from defenses.
Through eight games, Clark is averaging 17.3 points, 6.3 assists, 5.4 rebounds and 1.4 steals per game. Sure, the efficiency hasn’t been there quite yet and she’s turned the basketball over more than she did in college, but these are all the growing pains of a rookie in the WNBA. Still figuring things out, Clark is still leading the Fever in both points and assists.
Caitlin Clark padded the stat sheet on both ends of the floor with a career performance last night đź’Ş
30 PTS
6 AST
5 REB
3 STL
3 BLK pic.twitter.com/v42cqT12eV— Indiana Fever (@IndianaFever) May 29, 2024
In the WNBA, every team is a superteam comprised of former collegiate stars. There is such a massive talent disparity between college and the pros, and when you’re going against the best defenses the league can offer as Indiana has, things are going to be tough to start out with.
Just look at Victor Wembanyama in the NBA. It was certainly an adjustment period for him early on, but he figured it out as the season progressed.
Though, a key difference between the two is that simply insane turnaround between the women’s college basketball season to the WNBA campaign. Clark was literally playing for Iowa less than two months ago in the national championship game.
Now, she is playing with a completely new team against a much higher level of competition. That surely explains a lot of the turnovers. If you watch the games as well, instead of just looking at the box scores, then you know that some of her turnover luck has been because of her teammates’ inability to catch open passes.
That brings up a final crucial point: Indiana got Caitlin Clark for a reason. They were the first overall pick for a reason. They weren’t a good squad last year.
While they have some potential pieces, they aren’t nearly on the same level as teams such as Las Vegas and New York.
Just like with Wembanyama and the San Antonio Spurs, one player cannot carry a team on their own, let alone a rookie.
Clark is in year one of a long journey in the WNBA. Eight games in ahead of a career that should be hundreds. She’s shown the good and the bad already, so everyone just calm down and let her and the Fever figure some things out.
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