Did the Olympic break help Caitlin Clark?

Caitlin Clark recorded a 29-point, 10-assist double-double on Friday in the Indiana Fever’s 98-89 victory on Friday night. It was the Fever’s first game back following the Olympic break and they certainly looked ready to play. Clark’s performance drew no shortage of attention from around the sports world. Former NBA superstar Kevin Garnett dropped an interesting take on Saturday morning following Clark’s impressive game.

“What if @CaitlinClark22’s Olympic break was the off season adjustment for the league that @wnba rookies don’t get before their 1st… shyt looked crazy out there yesterday… Can tell she was in the film room,” Garnett wrote on X, formerly Twitter.

Clark’s snub from the USA women’s Olympic team has been a major talking point. Perhaps it was a blessing in disguise, though. Garnett seems to believe that it worked as an “adjustment” of sorts for the Fever rookie.

“Peep the diff… same shyt from first half, except better pace, command, and feet,” Garnett added.

Caitlin Clark on track for WNBA Rookie of the Year Award

Patrick Breen/The Republic / USA TODAY NETWORK
Clark and the Fever’s win over the Mercury was a tremendous way to start the second half of the season. Clark is establishing herself as the Rookie of the Year favorite. Angel Reese still has an argument in the conversation, but Clark will win the award if she continues to play like she did on Friday evening.

Interestingly, her performance came against Diana Taurasi and the Mercury. Before the 2024 season, Taurasi made headlines while speaking on ESPN when she said that “reality is coming” for Clark amid her preseason hype, via Barstool Sports.

“Reality is coming,” Taurasi responded when asked what the WNBA will have in store for Clark and other rookies. “There’s levels to this thing and that’s just life. We all went through it. You see it on the NBA side and you’re going to see it on this side. You look superhuman playing against 18 year olds. But you’re going to come play with some grown women that have been playing professional basketball for a long time.

“Not saying that it’s not going to translate, because when you’re great at what you do you’re just going to get better. But there’s going to be a transition period. You’re going to have to give yourself some grace as a rookie… It might take a little bit longer for some people.”

Taurasi’s comments do apply to most rookies. Making the transition from college basketball to the WNBA is difficult. Clark, though, is undefeated so far against Taurasi in the WNBA.

The reality is that Caitlin Clark is proving to be a special kind of superstar. It isn’t often that rookies see this kind of success so quickly in their careers. Clark’s next goal is to lead Indiana to the postseason and perhaps even make a deep playoff run.

At the very least, Clark has placed herself in the best possible position to win the 2024 WNBA Rookie of the Year Award. She will still need to finish the season strong, however.