‘Reality is coming’
Taurasi says Clark, other college stars’ move to WNBA will be a wake-up call
Caitlin Clark has lit up women's college basketball and captured the imagination of casual fans like few athletes in all of sports over the last several years.
But when she gets to the WNBA this summer, former UConn women's basketball legend Diana Taurasi says she might be in for a little bit of a rude awakening.
Appearing on SportsCenter with Scott Van Pelt after Iowa's 71-69 win over UConn in the Final Four on Friday, Taurasi said WNBA veterans are going to have something to say about Clark and other college stars' chances at immediate stardom.
“Look, SVP. Reality is coming. 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 with some grown women that have been playing professional basketball for a long time,” Taurasi said.
“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 is going to be a transition period, where you're just going to have to give yourself grace as a rookie, and it might take a little bit longer for some people.”
Based on her own career, Taurasi may be slightly overstating the difficulty Clark and other college stars will have when entering the league. The Huskies legend averaged 17 points, 4.4 rebounds and 3.9 assists per game in her rookie season in 2004. She won Rookie of the Year, was first-team All-WNBA and finished third in MVP voting.
Last season's No. 1 pick, Aliyah Boston of South Carolina, averaged 14.5 points and 8.4 rebounds on 57.8 percent shooting and was named an All-Star, though her Indiana Fever finished 13-27, last place in the East.
It should be fascinating to watch whether or not Clark will have the same kind of immediate success in the WNBA. The 41-yearold Taurasi will play a role in welcoming her to the league, as she'll lace ‘em up for her 20th season this summer.