Indiana Fever's Caitlin Clark walks off Footprint Center floor exhausted after Mercury win
The 22-year-old superstar will get a break, but only for a while before she has to get back to commanding attention from the basketball nation in America.
PHOENIX – A dialed-in Caitlin Clark was to be expected for her first meeting against the Phoenix Mercury and Diana Taurasi.
An ill one was not.
Clark, who was one rebound shy of becoming the first WNBA rookie to have a triple-double, finished with her second double-double of her rookie season with 15 points and 12 assists. She did so while playing with a migraine, according to the Fever.
“I think she didn’t feel well throughout the entire game,” Fever coach Christie Sides said postgame.
Clark’s step-back threes and monstrous performances in college sold out plenty of arenas. On Sunday, the Footprint Center sold out its entire capacity with 17,071 fans in the Fever’s 88-82 comeback win over the Mercury.
Clark was introduced in the Fever’s starting five and got cheers from most of the arena. Whenever she scored, the Footprint Center erupted even more than it did for the home team.
“It’s strange,” Taurasi said. “But, whatever.”
A Clark masterpiece was the story that many envisioned what would have defined a Fever win. Clark played well, but she was harassed by Mercury forward Kahleah Copper on offense and struggled to score, making just 4-of-14 shots and 2-of-10 3-pointers.
When Clark did score, the building erupted. And she did enough to secure her team a victory against Taurasi, who is widely regarded as the greatest women’s player ever and one of her idols.
“That’s somebody I grew up idolizing and looking up to and wanting to be like one day,” Clark said.
Clark’s postgame posture
An isolated Clark walked down the hallway at a road game, looking exhausted.
Clark is coming off an exhilarating stretch of making a deep run in the NCAA Tournament, to shortly after being the No. 1 overall pick to now being at the halfway point of her rookie season.
Clark’s transcendent impact on the women’s game is something that will be remembered widely in American basketball.
“It’s been a lot of pressure, a lot of things thrown at her and she keeps showing up and she keeps getting better every single game,” Taurasi said.
Taurasi has taken every step that Clark will seemingly take. And she has done it the best one could imagine.
A three-time WNBA champion, Taurasi’s criticisms of Clark seemed to some to indicate jealousy or a disposition that she did not appreciate the 22-year-old star. That, by her comments postgame, was further than the truth.
“Her future is super bright,” Taurasi said.
A face already carved in the Mount Rushmore of WNBA superstars, Taurasi has indicated that Clark’s face is the next to be etched. While she was asked about what Clark has done for the women’s game, Taurasi made sure to mention what Clark has meant for the Indiana Fever.
Indiana has had the No. 1 pick in consecutive drafts and is looking to restore itself as a premier team.
“When I think of her, I think of what she’s done for that team,” Taurasi said.
Clark was not made available postgame due to illness, but her impact on the game and any words she could have said were already stated non-verbally.
Clark sells out Phoenix Mercury home, and commands the fans’ attention
The Footprint Center normally holds 14,000-plus fans, at most, for Mercury games.
Taurasi and guard Natasha Cloud said they did not notice any difference in the support for their team. That’s because the X-Factor has been one of the WNBA’s best fan bases since its inception in 1997.
Clark’s presence, though, is much different. She plays poised beyond her years. She carries a level of mystique that is only comparable to some basketball legends. A reporter pointed out the atmosphere Clark holds is similar to that of Magic Johnson and Larry Bird.
“Yeah,” Taurasi agreed.
The WNBA has seen many great players throughout its history. Taurasi, Maya Moore and Lisa Leslie are some of the greatest players since the sport was created by James Naismith, regardless of gender. Clark is possibly the best player that has ever laced up shoes.
Iowa basketball was never the same program without Clark, who in her four years in Des Moines became NCAA basketball’s all-time leading scorer. Soon after her team was defeated in the title game by South Carolina, Clark turned pro. It’d be understandable to think she is tired.
“I think it’s just the pace that everything has kind of evolved over the past few months,” Clark said before the game, “for myself.”
Clark hit two step-back threes against the Mercury. She hit two free throws to basically secure her team a win.
But a tired Clark was the one noticeable after the game.
Taurasi gives Clark praise
Taurasi, appearing to be brief by some level in her comments to Clark, shouldered questions about the rookie postgame with grace.
The WNBA is in the midst of a massive uprising of popularity, according to some players. Clark is at the center of it, and there could be some jealousy.
“It’s the same situation for every single person that’s ever come to this league and has been drafted,” Clark said before Sunday’s game. “Maybe, my window was a little bit shorter…”
Sure, but the room for error is even smaller.
The WNBA is becoming more and more competitive. Guard Natasha Cloud made that clear postgame while emphasizing that Clark’s class has only added to what the league has done.
But that’s the thing. Nobody has done what she has done. Nobody has carried the perception of an entire league on their back at a young age with sky-high expectations to deliver and turn around a young team. A young LeBron James might have done enough to earn himself into the topic of becoming the greatest player ever, but Clark is being rushed to that.
A break is coming for the superstar, who said the WNBA’s Olympic time off will improve her team.
“I think the advantage is you to get to practice for three weeks,” Clark said before Sunday’s game. “You get to get in the gym and get better.”
That’s pretty much what everyone expects Clark to do.
Before Sunday’s game, Clark fielded questions by reporters outside Arizona State University. Clark, who has traveled since she left her home state, jumped in the pool inside the university’s basketball practice facility and put her arms on her head, closing her eyes while swimming backward.
Much like that day, Clark gets a chance to rest after the Fever win. But like Taurasi did before her, Clark’s destiny only leads her back to where she has captured the attention of millions: on the court.