Shannon Sharpe and Gilbert Arenas recently shared their views on the newcomers to the WNBA. The discussion during the latest episode of Nightcap surrounded Iowa Hawkeyes’ Caitlin Clark and USC Trojans’ Juju Watkins. In the process, Arenas had a very different opinion on Clark, which has caught the attention of the NBA community.
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The 42-year-old openly backed Watkins ahead of Clark in the pecking order.
“If Juju was allowed to come out in a draft, [Indiana] Fever will regret that they took Caitlin Clark number 1. Caitlin is great. She is not Juju. If they match up in a tournament, 1000% Juju gonna pick her up full court”.
Interestingly, his co-panelist, Sharpe, sided with him on the matter instantaneously. The 55-year-old elaborated on Arenas’ stance while applauding the USC Trojans star’s ability to play through contact. He highlighted how the 18-year-old possessed “an adult body”, providing her with an upper hand over Clark.
Arenas soon voiced the same while shedding light on the potential one-on-one scenarios between them. The 3x All-Star mentioned how Clark’s teammates might be required to set screens in case Watkins decided to guard her. Whereas, the latter could easily bypass the Iowa Hawkeyes star’s contest as Agent Zero described the situation as “lunch meat”.
Their statements showcased the importance of physicality in the WNBA over years of experience under one’s belt. As per their observations, Watkins seemingly had a clear advantage over Clark under those conditions. After all, the latter had to pay the price for lack of physicality on numerous occasions in her career.
However, the Iowa-born has made a name for herself in the NCAA for causing disruption time and again. She will be entering the draft with sky-high confidence after setting multiple benchmarks in the circuit. Hence, a similar outcome remains a possibility for Clark despite the odds disfavoring her.
Can Caitlin Clark prove Gilbert Arenas wrong?
Watkins’ rise as a freshman for the USC Trojans has been remarkable. She had already broken several records in the circuit, notably, most Pac-12 Freshman of the Week honors (14) and most points scored in a game (51). The teenager has recently soared to new heights by surpassing Clark’s record of the most-scoring freshman in NCAA history.
This added volume to Arenas’ recommended pecking order, although several continue to back Clark. As per ESPN, the 22-year-old remained at the top of their Top 25 players in the Sweet 16 list. In comparison, Watkins was third on the table, capturing the impact of the Iowa Hawkeyes star.
Therefore, the subjective dynamic around them has added a new layer to the conversation. This also makes the future of WNBA exciting to look forward to as the fans keep a close on the recent happenings.
