Caitlin Clark took another step toward cementing herself as among the most impactful WNBA debutants of all time, securing the league's single-season assist record for a rookie in Sunday's 92-75 victory over Seattle .
Her marvelous first season with the Indiana Fever followed skepticism that Clark's college success wouldn't translate into the professional ranks, which only grew after acute early shooting and turnover struggles, but former WNBA legend Sue Bird maintained that the sharp-shooting sensation could have an immediate impact on the league.
“I think if she plays up to her potential, yes, that’s realistic,” Bird said in February. “And, by the way, that’s not a knock on anyone in the WNBA. It’s going to be hard, but I think she can do it... I do think she has a chance at having a lot of success early, and I think a lot of it comes down to her long-distance shooting. That is her separator. You’re not really used to guarding people out there.”
Clark and Bird's careers both began on quite similar paths, starting as accolated collegiate stars. While the former Iowa star made her name through unprecedented volume scoring and was the primary option on an undermanned Hawkeyes squad, Bird provided a hyper-efficient scoring punch with notorious blue-bloods UConn, finishing her senior season with a 63.8 true shooting percentage en route to a second national championship.
The similarities continued in Bird's rookie year, selected first overall like Clark to the Seattle Storm, where she led the team in minutes and was the primary backcourt scoring option. Bird would lead the league in turnovers, giveaways that were largely offset by her six assists per game, and managed to transform Seattle from the league's joint-worst team into a playoff squad with a 17-15 record.
Clark has certainly been plagued by turnovers as a rookie, shattering the single-season record for giveaways with 11 games remaining. This poor ball security was particularly problematic in Clark's turbulent introduction to the WNBA, setting the league's record for turnovers in a debut, and emboldened naysayers who believed that her historic college output wouldn't translate to the W.
"Will Caitlin Clark be a good pro? Absolutely," said Sheryl Swoopes, the former all-time collegiate basketball points leader before Clark's run this past season. "Will Caitlin Clark come into the WNBA and do what she’s doing right now immediately? Absolutely not. Not going to happen."
Clark's turnovers have reduced only slightly since the beginning of the year, her improvement instead a product of historic assist numbers. Since June 23, a narrow one-point defeat to Angel Reese's Chicago Sky , she's cracked double-digit assists in eight of 11 outings while maintaining better than a 2:1 assist-to-turnover ratio in the process.
During this stretch, which included a stunning 19-assist performance against Dallas just before the Olympic break, the Fever have also finally unrooted themselves from the WNBA cellar. Clark's squad has now won six of its last nine games, including a pair of comfortable wins after returning to action this week, and moved temporarily into the league's final playoff spot.
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