The Indiana Fever lost their last game against the Dallas Wings 93-101. However, Caitlin Clark had a record-breaking night at College Park Center, surpassing the all-time single-game assists record in the WNBA with 19 assists. After the brilliant performance from Clark, NBA veteran Paul Pierce said that CC is now back at pole position in the race for the Rookie of the Year title.
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He noted that previously Angel Reese had a lead over her due to her record-breaking double-double stretch with the Chicago Sky. But Pierce claimed on FS1’s UNDISPUTED, that Clark is now gaining back her ground on the Sky Center.
Reese climbed up the ranks recently with her 15 consecutive double-doubles record. The previous record was held by Candace Parker who had 12 double-doubles in a row in 2009-10. So, after Reese’s all-time record, it was understandable why some people decided to rearrange their pick for the ROTY honors.
However, Clark’s record-breaking 19 assists in a game against Dallas, where she also had 24 points and six rebounds has brought her back to the forefront. At least, Paul Pierce thinks so.
The 46-year-old said, “For me, that puts her ahead in the race for Rookie of the Year for me…Angel Reese was in the lead because she beat Las Vegas, double-double, she got the lead. Now, Caitlin Clark comes, 19 assists, WNBA record, she retook the lead.”
Keyshawn Johnson then pointed out that the Fever lost the game on Clark’s record-breaking night. However, Pierce claimed that the loss is the failure of the team, not an individual. As far as individual performances are concerned, he has no doubts that CC is in the lead. Because the ROTY is an individual award, not a team award.
https://twitter.com/undisputed/status/1813945562196238709
Even though Pierce said that he would have liked to see Clark and Co. win the game, losing against the Wings cannot be held against the 2024 number one pick. The Celtics legend even brought up his career-high 50-point game against LeBron James’ Cavaliers to show that individual performances don’t always decide the outcome of a contest.
Either way, this is shaping up to be a brilliant contest between two of the most talented rookies in the league. As of now, several notable people have shared their two cents to this conversation and have chosen their ROTY. But looking at the level of competition between Reese and Clark, a final decision will probably go down to the wire.
Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese are competing for the ROTY title
The most fascinating thing about their rivalry is that they started it off before even getting into the league. Clark and Reese were competitors at the collegiate level while representing Iowa and LSU respectively.
Now in the big leagues, they have continued their rivalry against one other. As per BetMGM, Clark has a -2000 odd to become the Rookie of the Year while Reese is with +750 odds to take the trophy home.
As for their stats in the regular season so far, CC is averaging 17.1 points per game with 5.8 rebounds, 8.2 assists, 1.5 steals, and 0.8 blocks. Reese, on the other hand, is averaging 13.5 points with 12.0 rebounds, 1.8 assists, 1.5 steals, and 0.4 blocks per game. She shoots 40.2% from the field and 20% from the three-point line to Clark’s 40.5% from the field and 32.7% from the three-point line.
