Dude…Caitlin Clark…DUUUUUUDE!!!!
There's been so much said about Iowa's great senior guard, Caitlin Clark, over the past few years that this article really isn't necessary.
But after watching her riveting performance on Monday night. Where the reigning College Player of the Year scored 41 points, pulled down 7 rebounds, and dished out 12 assists in the Hawkeyes' 94-87 win over LSU in the Elite Eight of the NCAA Women's Basketball Tournament. I just had to write something.
You may remember last summer that I wrote about baseball star Shohei Ohtani and used many superlatives to describe his excellence on the diamond.
Well, this is kind of the same thing. Right down to the title of the article.
There are many great players in college women's basketball today. Connecticut has Paige Bueckers. USC has the great freshman, JuJu Watkins. Angel Reese at LSU is tremendous. South Carolina has a roster full of great players.
But Caitlin Clark (pictured above) is a GENERATIONAL talent, at least at the college level. People like her only come around once every 25-30 years.
She is the closest thing I've ever seen to Steph Curry. Her shooting ability (the logo 3) is identical to Curry. She's an excellent passer (9 assists/game), gets more rebounds than a player her size should get (7.3 per game). And like Curry, she's a great free throw shooter (86% from the line).
And she has the intangibles, too. While not the greatest individual defender (she's far from terrible at that), she has the sixth sense (like Larry Bird, Magic, & Jordan had) to make the great defensive play when the team needs it.
She's got confidence (swag, as the kids call it today), good leadership qualities, and she seems to be coachable (like Steph Curry always has been).
Some have called her the greatest college player ever. Well, that's very debatable. Cheryl Miller, Nancy Lieberman, Lisa Leslie, Chamique Holdsclaw, Sue Bird, Diana Taurasi, Breanna Stewart, and others were all great in their time. And I'm forgetting others, too. And all have legitimate arguments.
But Clark is in the debate now. She's the all-time leading scorer in Division 1 history, men or women. She has led the Hawkeyes (not a blue blood program) to two straight Final Fours. She has made a lot of fans of women's basketball in her time in Iowa City with her style of play, her personality, and her accomplishments. She is a household name in 2024. Something that was unthinkable even 10 years ago.
And that may be her greatest accomplishment yet.