Caitlin Clark proved that she is special yet again as she delivered a 41 points, 12 assists, and 7 rebounds masterpiece. Thanks to her heroics, the Iowa Hawkeyes overcame a persistent LSU Tigers 94-87. Her performance overwhelmed Paul Pierce, who declared the performance the “greatest” he had ever seen in NCAA across the men’s and women’s tournaments. Besides, he reiterated his stance about Clark being just like Stephen Curry and how he has influenced her playing style.
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On Undisputed, the 2008 NBA champion spoke at length about NCAA All-Time Leading Scorer’s magical ways. For the Truth, her transcendental playing style is unique in the women’s hoops scene. He can’t fit any WNBA legend in her mold and that’s why, he only finds Stephen Curry as the apt comparison. Pierce confessed this is an exceptional stance because he never compares women hoopers to NBA athletes.
“I’ve never compared a female basketball player to an NBA basketball player. Most of the comparables are to other female players. Lisa Leslie, Tina[Thompson], Candace Parker, Sheryl Swoopes. They are all comparable but only comparable to her is Steph Curry. I’ve never seen anything like this so hats off to her,” Pierce admitted to Skip Bayless and Keyshawn Johnson.
Thus, Clark’s 41-point performance elevated her further in Pierce’s observations. She has turned the record books upside down and has again lifted her program to the Final Four. In this wake, the Stephen Curry comparisons have become even more prominent. This isn’t the first that the Celtics legend has alluded to Curry’s influence on Caitlin Clark.
From Stephen Curry to Caitlin Clark
In terms of playing style, she indeed resembles Steph in a myriad of ways. Both are capable of nailing shots from way beyond the arc. They showcase no hesitation while attempting their shots and can create shots from tough angles. Clark attempted a mind-boggling 13.2 shots, per game, from the three-point line, and made 5.2, for 38.0%.
Both attempts and makes were by far the highest in the NCAAW D1 scene. She broke the NCAAW scoring record earlier held by Kelsey Plum after draining a logo three. Meanwhile, Curry has made 4.8 out of 12 attempts from deep, which is again at the top in the NBA. Thus, she has adapted to Steph’s fearless mentality when shooting the ball from afar.
Apart from that, Clark is also a crafty dribbler and passer like the 4x NBA champion and is terrific at soaking contact. She has taken a lot of notes out of Steph Curry’s playbook. This incredible ability makes her a tremendous threat on the offensive and helped elevate the Hawkeyes program to unprecedented heights.
The Des Moines native began high school in the late 2010s when Curry was transforming the basketball scene. Her unparalleled abilities have helped lift the women’s hoops scene to a whole new level as they are now becoming the talk of the town.
