WS Chronicle

This article is not what you think. It is not about telling you she is the best player in the WNBA, because she’s not, nor is it about saying she isn’t the best thing to hit the WNBA ever, because she is. When I say best thing, I mean she is the most important player to come into the league because of the money and attention she brought to the league.

What this article is about is simply the truth about the rookie year Clark has put in thus far. I wanted to write an article about her since she was lighting up players at Iowa, but I figured it would be best to wait until she entered the WNBA and see how she fared against the best players in the world.

Clark has been the most polarizing player to enter the WNBA, maybe ever.  She entered the league with so much hype and notoriety, it had to be difficult for her to live up to the hype. Fortunately for her, she has so far.

I have to be honest and say I did not think she would perform as well as she has. So far this season, she is averaging 19.1 pts, 5.8 rebs, and 8.4 asts per game. Those are pretty gaudy numbers for a rookie.  

Clark had a record-breaking college career, and she has continued to add to her accolades in the WNBA. So far this year, she has already set a number of records such as the rookie single-season scoring record, the single-season record for assists, rookie record for three-pointers, WNBA single-season record for assists, WNBA single-season turnover record, and WNBA single-game record for assists with 19, just to name a few.

Not only has Clark set multiple records, she has also assisted in leading the Indiana Fever back to playoffs for the first time since 2016. For everything she has had to endure coming into the WNBA, you have to admit that is pretty remarkable.

Prior to her debut in the league, several veteran players, many analysts, and people who didn’t like Clark all said she would not have it as easy in the WNBA as she did in college at Iowa. Well duh, that’s obvious. She went from playing against some of the best amateur players in the country, to playing the best opposition in the world; of course she would have a tougher time.

I think the issues most people had with her was that she was white and was the most popular women’s player, all before she ever dribbled a basketball on a WNBA court. Her stardom is very reminiscent of when LeBron James was coming into the NBA and was on the cover of Sports Illustrated 20 years ago. The biggest difference between now and then is the fact that we have social media and everyone around the world can have their opinions heard. Even through all that, she has continued to perform.

The biggest drawback for Clark has not been her play, it has been the actions of her fans. Some of her fans have turned a lot of people off due to their ridiculous claims that she is the best player in the league, or the best player the league has ever seen and that is an asinine claim. There is no way that Clark is the best player in the WNBA. After doing a deep dive, I honestly don’t think she is top 5 yet and that is not to disparage her ability, but rather give credit to the players that have been putting in work for years in the league. 

Come on now, she is a good player, but she has a long way to go to approach the GOAT conversation of the WNBA.  

I do feel she is garnering so much fanfare because she is a white player who played at Iowa and is very good at a sport that is dominated by Black players. It’s just a shame that people are using her as their way of expressing their underlying bigotry. They used Clark’s rivalry with Angel Reese as a means to spew their hate and back Clark. They just don’t understand that makes people on the other side dislike her even more, which is sad. Clark had nothing to do with it as she is just trying to play ball and showcase her incredible talent. People on both sides need to grow up and appreciate both players for their skill.

If you want to bring race into it, she is not even the best white player in the league right now. Breanna Stewart and Sabrina Ionescu are better players than Clark right now. That is not to say she can’t eclipse them; she just has to put in the work that the other two have done for years.

You have to give credit where credit is due. Just remember Clark has played basketball almost nonstop since November of 2023. She had a few weeks off after being drafted and a month off for the Olympics. That’s a lot of basketball to play in 10 months’ time.

I am eager to see how her career plays out. I am also glad that she is bringing more attention to the WNBA because they have some fantastic athletes in that league. My hope is that the Clark haters calm down and give this young lady her credit and I hope the Clark fanatics chill out about putting her so high on a pedestal and just let the young lady do her thing without all that added pressure.