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Believe it or not, the WNBA’s most anticipated season is already halfway over. All 12 teams in the league are about halfway through their 40-game schedules, and the W has plenty of interesting storylines.
The Las Vegas Aces are seeking their third straight WNBA title behind two-time MVP and defensive player of the year A’ja Wilson, but they find themselves outnumbered in the standings by teams like the New York Liberty and Connecticut Sun. Diana Taurasi, 20 years after entering the league in 2004, remains a driving force on the Phoenix Mercury’s backline. And then, of course, there are the rookies.
Indiana Fever’s Caitlin Clark may already be the most famous women’s basketball player of all time. Her former college rival, Chicago Sky’s Angel Reese, has become a household name in her own right. In very different ways, the two players have gone on to spearhead a thrilling race for Rookie of the Year. Here’s the story of the video… so far.
Caitlin Clark, guard, Indiana Fever
The argument in favor: Clark isn’t exactly carrying the WNBA on her shoulders, but rather building on the progress the league took years to make before she arrived. But she remains the league’s biggest draw. Her every move is closely scrutinized. Often by those with an agenda beyond basketball. – and, as with all star rookies, opponents work tirelessly to shake her. But Clark has generally handled the spotlight well while also conjuring a little magic on the court. The first rookie in league history to post a triple-double when he produced 19 points, 13 assists and 12 rebounds in a win over Liberty on Saturday. His prodigious playmaking ability has been on display frequently: Clark is Third in the WNBA with 7.4 assists per game, despite playing on a team that was bad enough to get the No. 1 overall pick two years in a row. She’s only going to get better from here, so her Rookie of the Year candidacy should get stronger as the season progresses.
The argument against: Clark has not been that Well. She’s an undeniable star, but don’t tell that to the WNBA defenders, who have denied her many things. Her 39.3 shooting percentage is significantly worse than her career average (46.2%) in four record-breaking seasons at Iowa. In the four games before After Saturday’s brilliant triple-double, Clark shot an ugly 33% from the field and turned the ball over nearly six times per game. That’s been a recurring problem. Clark’s 122 turnovers through Saturday They are way ahead than any other player. Maybe the rookie award should go to a player who doesn’t give the ball away to the other team as often, or at least one who has made more field goals per game than turnovers (Clark doesn’t so far, averaging 4.9 field goals made and 5.5 turnovers).
Angel Reese, forward, Chicago Sky
The argument in favor: It’s simple: Reese has been the WNBA’s best rookie to this point in the season. The 6-foot-3 forward has been absolutely dominant as a rebounder, with her calling card dating back to a decorated college career at Maryland and LSU. Reese’s 21.3 total rebound percentage through Saturday was a season-high. the whole league Among the regular rotation players. She is a disruptive force in the middle of Chicago’s defense and also manages to score a lot of points, as evidenced by an ongoing streak of 13 double-doubles. That streak is not just a rookie record, but a record for the entire history of the WNBA. Not bad for a first-year player. Reese has done it all while dealing with her own A media circus and intense public attention on everything she says and does. Whether by conventional statistics, advanced numbers or win shares, Reese comfortably dominates all WNBA rookies.
The argument against: At the moment, it’s not a very good situation. Reese should be the favorite, although the betting markets are Just warming up slowly Reese has no value as a perimeter shooter and isn’t a polished finisher near the rim. Her rebounding totals, as excellent as they are, have long been inflated by Reese’s many opportunities to collect her own misses near the rim. She had plenty of such opportunities at LSU, where she shot 47.1% from the field in her senior season. She’s had plenty more with the Sky, where she’s shot 41%. By taking nearly all of her shots from near the rim, unlike Clark, Reese has had opportunities to go on and add to her rebounding totals without necessarily being efficient. Clark doesn’t have the same opportunities to pad stats near the rim and has less room for error in her pursuit of efficiency, so perhaps the Fever’s point guard should have some more wiggle room in evaluating her early stat lines.
Rickea Jackson, guard, Los Angeles Sparks
The argument in favor: Life is more interesting when there’s a spoiler in the mix. There’s a slim chance that someone not named Clark or Reese could win the award. The other most likely candidate may be Chicago center Kamilla Cardoso, but she faces two problems: An injury kept her out of a handful of games early in the season, and she shares the frontcourt with Reese, who is clearly a better candidate. So any unlikely interloper would have to come from somewhere else, and Jackson fits the bill. She’s the only other rookie averaging double figures in scoring (10.4 points per game), and she’s done so with more efficient shooting numbers than Clark or Reese, and she has far fewer turnovers than Clark.
The argument against: Well, you know it. Reese and Clark are making everyone else’s cases irrelevant.
