Few positional awards in the game of basketball are more prestigious than the Nancy Lieberman Award. Named for Basketball Hall of Fame legend Nancy Lieberman, the award goes to the best point guard in collegiate women’s basketball.
Presented by the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, the winner best exemplifies “the floor leadership, play-making and ball-handling skills that personified Nancy Lieberman during her career.”
The recipients of the Nancy Lieberman Award reads off as a list of the game’s legends, starting with Sue Bird as the inaugural winner. She would win three straight before fellow UConn Huskie Diana Taurasi became the second woman to win the award.
Since then, great players such as Courtney Vandersloot, Skylar Diggins, Kelsey Plum, and Sabrina Ionescu have won the award amongst many other fantastic players.
Over the past two years though, Iowa point guard Caitlin Clark has had a vice grip on the Nancy Lieberman Award. As a senior, she has no intention on giving up her place as the top point guard in the nation, recently placed back on the watch list for the award.
👀📋@CaitlinClark22 has been named to the Nancy Lieberman Award Watch List, honoring the nation’s top point guard. #Hawkeyes pic.twitter.com/mx3QJ51k0w
— Iowa Women's Basketball (@IowaWBB) January 22, 2024
Clark figures to be the clear favorite to win her third-straight Nancy Lieberman Award, tying Sue Bird and Sabrina Ionescu for the most times receiving the award with three. Clark has been nothing short of spectacular, again, leading the nation in scoring with 31.7 points per game. She is also second in the nation in assists with 7.7. She has led her Hawkeys to an 18-2 record thus far this season.
The biggest name potentially in college sports, Clark lives up to her top billing every time she steps on the court. While she is only on the watch list currently, you better believe that the voting committee is just keeping that award shiny for Clark at the end of the season.
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