When Caitlin Clark learned she wouldn’t be making the U.S. women’s national team for the Paris Olympics, she texted her Indiana Fever coach, Christie Fever.
“They have awakened a monster,” Clark wrote, according to Sides.
By doing this, she also gave that monster some seemingly much-needed rest — a month-long break to recharge and refocus, one that has the chance to change the dynamic of the rest of the WNBA season.
Clark is a different player now — and a much better player — than she was in May, when she jumped almost directly from a long season at Iowa to the WNBA. Part of that is adjusting to the pro game. Part of that is figuring out how to play with her teammates — and her teammates figuring out how to play with her.
And maybe some of that, at least in these last two games where she’s played some of her best professional basketball yet, will finally get a chance to unload.
What lies ahead is uncharted territory. Last week’s Clark is one of the best players in the WNBA, not just a promising rookie finding her feet. Can she keep it up? And how about improving it?
The Fever — 12-7 from an 1-8 start — are in solid position to make the playoffs. They play in a big game Saturday against potential playoff opponent Minnesota, coached by Cheryl Reeve, who also led the U.S. women at the Olympics.
Indiana continues to draw massive television viewers. Last weekend, 2.3 million people tuned in to watch its game against Seattle. That was 263 percent more than the next-highest non-Fever game of the weekend (New York v. Las Vegas) and 454 percent more than the next-highest.
Now imagine Clark playing at a level approaching her college-level crowd favorite in the home stretch and in actual playoff series?
The WNBA has historically struggled to get attention once the NFL season starts. Maybe not in this case. Logo threes and no-look passes often get the attention. The Clark phenomenon isn’t slowing down, it’s growing.
Every now and then a unique talent comes along who, for a variety of reasons, connects with audiences and elevates an entire sport — Tiger Woods, Lance Armstrong, even a Connor McGregor. But they have to remain successful and exciting for it to last, let alone snowball.
That’s the direction Clark is pointing. That’s the monster.
In her 11 WNBA games before rumors surfaced that she would not make the Olympic roster, Clark averaged 15.6 points and 6.4 assists while connecting on 35.7 percent of her shots and making 29.7 percent of her three-pointers.
In the 15 games between the announcement and halftime, she increased her scoring to 18.2 points and 9.5 assists while shooting 43.9 times overall and 35.7 times from behind the three-point line.
In two games since the WNBA returned, it’s 26.0 points, 9.5 assists on 48.6% shooting. More importantly, the Fever have won both.
Clark, like any rookie in any league, had to deal with a new environment. As with any WNBA rookie, it happened quickly — her Iowa season ended on April 7 with a loss in the national title game. Eight days later, she was drafted. Then came a move, training camp and the season opener on May 14.
Moreover, she immediately became the strategic and emotional defensive center of every opponent.
“Reality is coming,” predicted the legendary Diana Taurasi.
Taurasi wasn’t wrong. It’s just that maybe there’s a different reality coming now. They can guard her, push her, fire her or whatever, but Clark will find her game either way.
If Clark — at least in the opinion of USA Basketball’s selection committee — wasn’t worthy of one of the 12 coveted spots on the roster before, she apparently was when the torch was lit in France.
“If we had to do it again, the way she plays, she would definitely be considered for a spot on the team because she is head and shoulders above a lot of the other players,” South Carolina coach Dawn Staley, a member of that committee, said July 30.
Anyway, she wasn’t chosen, the Americans won gold anyway.
And now Caitlin Clark looks even better: rested and ready for a monster finish.
