Caitlin Clark made her long-awaited debut in the WNBA on Friday in preseason action as the Indiana Fever lost to the Dallas Wings. But, Clark, who was the first overall pick in last month’s draft, shined as expected, scoring 21 points.
Clark took to Instagram on Sunday evening and had a two-word message about her debut along with some awesome photos of the action:
The game was played in front of a sold-out crowd at the College Park Center in Arlington, Texas, much in part to Clark’s presence. The former Iowa star has skyrocketed the popularity of women’s basketball over the last year after her historic college career, recently breaking the NCAA’s scoring record a few months ago.
Caitlin Clark showcasing her talent
While it was just one game so far, Clark showed why she’s expected to be a superstar in the WNBA. The rookie was 5 for 13 from three-point land while grabbing three rebounds and dishing out two assists. Most of her damage came in the first half, scoring 16 points before the break.
Clark seemed content with how she played. Via The Athletic:
“My biggest goal coming into tonight was being myself, have fun playing basketball, be aggressive. Thought that’s what I did,” Clark said Friday in a post-game press conference.
“I thought we played really hard. Just a great atmosphere for women’s basketball,” Clark said postgame on the Bally Sports broadcast. “I think it’s a good kickoff to the WNBA season.”
But, it wasn’t all positive for Caitlin Clark. She also had five turnovers and four fouls, which is why she didn’t play a lot in the third quarter. After all, this is a different level than college and there will be a small adjustment period for the sharpshooter.
“Overall, a lot to learn from,” Clark said. “These are good learning experiences for us. This doesn’t count. Go back and watch the film, film doesn’t lie and learn from that.”
Clark had an opportunity to tie the game at the buzzer from deep, but missed the contested three. She saw some great things from the Fever but also some areas the squad needs to work on:
“I think just the little things. Knowing when to push in transition, knowing when to slow up and run our offense a little bit better,” Clark added. “Overall our defense was pretty good, I thought we could’ve gotten better in some areas. I thought we could’ve passed the ball a little bit better but overall, you know a lot to learn from. These are good learning experiences for us, you know this doesn’t count. Go back and watch some film – film doesn’t lie – and learn from that.”
Caitlin Clark will officially make her WNBA regular season debut on Tuesday, May 14th against the Connecticut Sun. Prior to that, Clark and the Fever have one more preseason matchup on Friday, May 10th against the Atlanta Dream.
We’ll see if Clark can ball out again and limit the mistakes as she continues to get accustomed to the WNBA.
