Caitlin Clark had what turned out to be a spectacular rookie WNBA season. The 22-year-old guard broke league records, led the league in several categories, and helped the Indiana Fever get back into the playoffs for the first time since 2016 despite exiting early.
Clark was asked what moment she will remember the most in her rookie season, and she had an unexpected answer. On “60 Minutes,” she told sports journalist Jon Wertheim the most memorable play from this season, a hard screen from New York Liberty center Jonquel Jones early in the year. She ruptured her eardrum in that play,
The incident, according to the rookie, taught her an important lesson in the physicality of professional-level basketball.
“We were in New York and Jonquel Jones set a good screen on me and I actually popped my eardrum. Ruptured my eardrum just on a screen,” recalled Clark. “It was a really good screen by JJ, she’s a tremendous player, but I think that just kind of speaks to the physicality of the league. She kind of got me in the right spot.”
Caitlin Clark is the first-ever player in WNBA history to record a triple-double as a rookie. She achieved this feat on July 6 against the New York Liberty, and did it again on September 4 against the Las Vegas Aces.
The former Iowa Hawkeye led the league in assists, even breaking the league’s single-game assist record, tallying 19 assists against the Dallas Wings on July 17. She also finished seventh in points per game this season, scoring the most points by a point guard ever in WNBA history. In all 40 games this season, she averaged 19.2 points, 8.4 assists, 5.7 rebounds, and 1.3 steals.
Needless to say, the first draft pick of this year exceeded the expectations set on her by all her fans and critics.
Caitlin Clark and Jonquel Jones teamed up at the WNBA All-Star game
Perhaps another core memory Caitlin Clark has of Jonquel Jones in her rookie season is the time they played together for Team WNBA at the All-Star game in Phoenix on July 20, facing Team USA. The rookie was all praises for the New York Liberty center in her “60 Minutes” interview.
The two had a moment in the game when Clark found an opening to pass the ball to Jones in Team WNBA’s fast break attempt in the second quarter.
Team WNBA defeated Team USA that night, 117-109, led by Caitlin Clark’s 10 assists and Jonquel Jones’ seven rebounds.
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