Denver Nuggets forward and NBA champion Michael Porter Jr. has recently joined the intriguing conversation about whether Indiana Fever star rookie Caitlin Clark can play in the NBA. Porter was recently asked during an appearance on Full Send Podcast if Clark can score in the league and came up with a blunt response. The former Missouri Tigers star said that Clark would get torched defensively if she was in the NBA. At the same time, Porter said that he thinks Clark can deal damage offensively because of how she operates from behind the arc.
“Caitlin is cold,” said Porter of the former Iowa Hawkeyes superstar. “That is the one girl, if she was in an NBA game, on defense, she would get cooked, but offensively she’ll knock down some corner threes or like a swing, swing three. She can shoot from that far.” Teams in the NBA would have a field day hunting Clark on defense for glaring mismatches, as she stands just 6’0″ with a 152-pound frame, but she should be able to stretch the floor on the other side of the court as a potent deep threat.
Caitlin Clark’s shooting has always impressed Porter — a lethal shooter himself in the NBA — since he started following her game during the Hawkeyes’ ride in March Madness. He even compared her to Golden State Warriors star point guard and greatest shooter ever Stephen Curry.
“She’s cold, bro. I never watched her play until the [NCAA] tournament, and I was actually in shock how good she was,” Porter said of Clark. “The way she was and the range she has, she’s like the female Steph Curry.”
Speaking of Curry, perhaps a 3-point shootout between Clark and the two-time NBA Most Valuable Player could happen in the near future — similar to the All-Star Weekend event that had Curry and New York Liberty star Sabrina Ionescu going head-to-head in a 3-point battle.
Caitlin Clark still figuring out the WNBA
Indiana Fever guard Caitlin Clark (22) is greeted by her teammates during the opening lineup introductions against the New York Liberty.
© Wendell Cruz-USA TODAY Sports
Caitlin Clark is still trying to get used to the play in the pros. It has been an up-and-down journey so far for her, but that’s not unexpected either. Even Clark must have known that adjusting against bigger, faster, and more skilled competition than the one she used to see at the college level would take time, and she’s just got to be patient with the process.
During her legendary four-year career with the Hawkeyes, Caitlin Clark averaged 28.4 points, 7.1 rebounds, 8.2 assists, and 1.5 steals per game while shooting 46.2 percent from the field and 37.7 percent from behind the arc. Clark’s incredible range and accuracy from way behind the 3-point line in college was perhaps the single biggest factor that propelled her to superstardom, though, everyone knows now that she’s more than just about dropping long bombs.
So far in her first year in the WNBA with the Fever, Caitlin Clark is averaging 16.8 points, 5.3 rebounds, and 6.3 assists per game. She is knocking down 37.3 percent of her shots from the floor and just 32.7 percent of her attempts from the 3-point area. Opponents are having success blitzing her off screens, making it harder for her to get off shots or make plays for her teammates. But again, that’s part of Clark’s learning curve, and she should be much more dangerous once she figures out how to deal with all the defensive schemes opponents are throwing at her.
Rexwell Villas is an experienced sports writer covering a variety of sports, including the NFL, NBA, MLB, NHL, and college football. He’s a Communications Arts graduate from the University of Santo Tomas in the Philippines.
Caitlin Clark
Denver Nuggets
Michael Porter Jr.
