Caitlin Clark’s return to the court saw her getting winded early in the game after some time away from basketball.
Having played almost continuously since last November—starting with her final year at Iowa, followed by the WNBA draft and her rookie season—Clark hadn’t had much of a break. Her absence from the Olympic team provided her with a much-needed rest, but it also disrupted her rhythm, leading to fatigue after just a few minutes of play.
In the aftermath of Friday night’s 98-89 win over the Phoenix Mercury, Clark shared her experience with reporters.
“I called for a sub six minutes in, if I’m being honest,” Clark said with a laugh. “I was like, ‘Holy cow.’ I think it was around seven minutes in. I called for a sub and said, ‘I need a quick minute here.'”
Caitlin Clark on getting back into live game speed after weeks off: “I called for a sub six minutes in, if I’m being honest. I was like, holy cow… I was like I need a quick minute here (laughing), because we were playing fast and then my defense isn’t as good.”
Full clip: pic.twitter.com/XihQRSKilD
— Matthew Byrne (@MatthewByrne1) August 17, 2024
“Because we were playing fast, my defense wasn’t as sharp, which is a liability for my team. I just needed a moment to catch my breath.”
Despite the early fatigue, Clark feels she’s been maintaining her game readiness relatively well.
“Getting back into game shape has been pretty easy,” Clark said. “We’ve been competing hard in practice and playing against our guys with referees coming in. We’ve scrimmaged live basketball five separate times.”
“Scrimmaging is the best way to stay in basketball shape, but it’s still tough to replicate a real game. So it felt great to get back out there.”
Clark impressed the home crowd at Gainbridge Fieldhouse with a standout performance, scoring 29 points and dishing out ten assists. She shot an efficient 8-of-16 from the field and 4-of-11 from three-point range.
Leave a Reply