How do you know when it’s the right time to pass?
What’s the best advice you’ve ever received during a competition?
What do you hope will be your mark on the sport?
How do you ensure that frustration doesn’t affect your relationships with your new teammates?
Those were among the six questions reporters asked Indiana Fever rookie Caitlin Clark on Thursday during what appeared to be the first 3½ minutes of a press conference following her team’s 89-77 loss to Seattle.
No one seemed to notice that her teammate Aliyah Boston was sitting to Clark’s right, with a microphone also in front of her.
When question #7 began with the words, “Caitlin, you—,” Clark interrupted the reporter and pointed to Boston.
Read more: Caitlin Clark on culture wars: Don’t use ‘my name’ to fuel racism and misogyny
“Ask Aliyah a question,” Clark said.
Boston remained expressionless. “No, I’m fine,” she said.
Several reporters seemed to speak at once, and Boston again indicated that they should continue as they were. But Clark waved her arm and gestured to Boston again.
“Ask Aliyah a question,” she said again, now looking at the table.
The reporters agreed, with what appears to be the last three questions of the session directed at Boston. She didn’t seem to hold any grudges about being ignored before and gave thoughtful answers.
Clark finished with 15 points, seven assists and six rebounds. Boston had 11 points and 14 rebounds. The Fever is 7-12 with two straight losses following a four-game winning streak.
Much has been made of Clark, NCAA basketball’s all-time leading scorer relative to other players in the WNBA this season. Some, like Chicago Sky rookie Angel Reese, have been at pains to point out that the league’s current popularity shouldn’t be attributed to just one person.
Read more: Angel Reese says Caitlin Clark gets a ‘special whistle’. It blew after Reese hit Clark on the head
Perhaps Clark was trying to repay Boston for having her back during a June 19 press conference following the Fever’s 88-81 win over the Washington Mystics. As Clark spoke about an errant pass she had attempted to throw to Boston, the reigning WNBA Rookie of the Year stopped her.
“It’s OK. Don’t worry about it,” Boston told Clark before addressing reporters. “I mean, because you look at Caitlin and you look at the way she passes the ball and sometimes things happen that way and that’s OK because we’re not going to let her hang her head. We’re not going to let our heads hang on dropped passes.
“Because we still continue to work together, and we know she’s a great passer, so if she thinks she can get the ball there, she’s going to throw it. And if I miss it, then it’s okay. It’s okay. Don’t worry.”
“Thanks, AB,” Clark replied as both women laughed.
Sign up for the LA Times SoCal high school sports newsletter to get scores, stories and an inside look at what makes prep sports so popular.
This story originally appeared in the Los Angeles Times.
