During the Indiana Fever’s loss to the Seattle Storm on June 27, Kaitlin Clark ran 16 pick-and-rolls. She was stuck on 10 of them. That kind of defensive focus has been ideal for the No. 1 overall pick, who has spent the first half of her rookie season trying to adjust to the professional game while guarding like one of the best players in the WNBA.
“It’s a women’s game now,” said Fever veteran Erica Wheeler. “It’s not college anymore. We’re a lot faster and stronger… She struggled a little bit in the beginning because she didn’t know what the physicality was like, but now she knows. She’s reading the game better , and like you I can see that the numbers don’t lie.”
Through 22 games, Clark is averaging 16.1 points, 6.0 rebounds and 7.4 assists, which would make him the fourth player – and the first rookie – with a 15/5/5 season. He leads all rookies in scoring and assists, ranking second in the league in the latter category, and he only needs 20 games. Install Fever Newbie Help Record, Recently she became First rookie to record a triple-double,
Clark can really do it all on the offensive end, but while his long-range 3-point shooting is his “super power” As Steph Curry said earlier this yearHis playmaking is arguably the most exciting aspect of his game.
“She sees things as they’re happening and sometimes knows the ball before the player receiving it even realizes it,” Fever coach Christy Sides said.
Most of Clark’s comfort comes from the pick-and-roll, which accounts for over 50% of his possessions. She is scoring 14.1 runs per game, second only to Sabrina Ionescu, and tied for the most by any rookie in the last decade.
Because of his unique gifts, opponents often choose to send multiple defenders in Clark’s way to, in the words of Chicago Sky coach Teresa Weatherspoon, “take the ball out of his hands as quickly as possible to allow other people to make decisions.” So to receive.” During Clark’s first 20 games, she had 89 attacks per second spectrum in the pick-and-roll, almost twice as many as the next highest player (Ionescu, 46).
The pressure Clark faces is so unique that even Wheeler, who twice led the WNBA in total pick-and-rolls, struggled at times to give instructions to her young teammate. Is. Wheeler said, “Nobody plays with me like they play with him.” “It’s a unique situation because they literally have him trapped in halfcourt. That’s never happened to me.”
The Fever have relied heavily on their men’s practice squad to help Clark adapt to the increasing athleticism and strength of opponents, and to run as many reps as possible when given the opportunity. It’s no surprise that Clark has looked more comfortable since his inglorious start of 11 games in 20 days ended, and he feels his studies have “definitely gotten better.”
As Clark has settled in, so have his teammates, who have had to get used to a heavy pick-and-roll system. None other than Aliyah Boston, who has primarily been a back-to-the-basket center throughout her career. Boston’s 49 possessions as a Roller through 22 games is equal to his 63 possessions last season. And this only includes instances where she took a shot, was fouled or turned it over, not those where she turned the ball over.
Clark has made 53 of Boston’s 79 assisted field goals, the most common assists on the team. Notably, only 17 of these assists have come in the team’s first 13 games, while 36 have come during their most recent 6-3 stretch.
During a recent quiz on social media, Boston was asked about his favorite game with Clark. His response was not surprising: “Any kind of ballscreen action because she always makes great reads.”
Take a closer look at some of the numbers from the Clarke-Boston pick-and-roll during this recent shift as the Fever posted wins over the Mercury and Liberty.
- capture: 65
- score: 63
- PPP: 0.969 (equal to the second most efficient offense in the league)
- Quality Shots: 49
- Business: 11
Boston has become more comfortable as a roller, whether it’s finishing at the rim on deep rolls…
…or deciding on a smaller role as a passer.
As Clark, Boston and the Fever have figured out how to handle offensive defense, teams have started to scale back that approach. In turn, this has given Clark more freedom to make plays himself, whether that’s stretching to a 3…
…or driving to the basket.
At some point in the near future, the Clark-Boston pick-and-roll will be the best play in basketball. That day may come sooner than we all think.
“The chemistry and playing with each other gets you on the same page in your mind,” Clark said.
A big downside for Clark so far has been turnovers. He leads the league by a wide margin with 5.5 per game, which would be the worst mark ever. Interestingly, only 45 of Clark’s 122 giveaways came from pick-and-roll situations, even though they accounted for more than half of his offensive possessions.
“I think there’s a difference between good turnovers and bad turnovers,” Clark said. “So you go back and look and it’s a good pass and maybe it hit his hands the wrong way and went out of bounds or maybe the defender got hit by the ball a little bit.”
Clark will probably always be the leader in turnovers due to her controlling offense, but there are no long-term concerns in that department. Rookie point guards have always struggled to take care of the ball, and none of them have been the No. 1 name in scouting reports.
Despite a promising start to her career, Clark was controversially removed from Team USA’s roster in the final round and will not be on the plane to Paris for the Olympics. The good thing is that after coming back from the All-Star Game with Boston and Kelsey Mitchell, she will be able to enjoy her first real break since last summer, and the Fever will get a real second training camp with their entire roster. . ,
Halfway through her rookie season, Clark is arguably the best point guard in the league, and the pace at which she’s improving may be something that won’t be debated when play resumes after the Olympic break. Already, he has scored or assisted more points (713) than any other player.
As Wheeler said, “The numbers don’t lie.”
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