Why Caitlin Clark isn’t the GOAT of women’s college basketball, but its most influential of ……👇
Caitlin Clark’s monumental college basketball career is over, with one notable thing still missing from her résumé. Clark and her Iowa Hawkeyes fell in the national championship game Sunday to a juggernaut South Carolina team that became the first undefeated national champion since 2016.
Clark still leaves the collegiate ranks with numerous records, led by her 3,951 career points that shattered the all-time NCAA Division I scoring mark for both men’s and women’s basketball. She also left a profound mark on the sport, with her otherworldly scoring prowess drawing record crowds and television viewership as she led Iowa to Big Ten regular-season and tournament titles and another national title game berth in 2023-24.
At the end of South Carolina’s on-court trophy ceremony Sunday, Gamecocks head coach Dawn Staley made a point to thank Clark for “lifting up our sport.”
“She carried a heavy load for our sport, and it’s not gonna stop on the collegiate tour,” Staley said. “When she is the No. 1 pick in the WNBA Draft, she’s gonna lift that league up as well. So Caitlin Clark, if you’re out there, you are one of the GOATs of our game, and we appreciate you.”
Even if she had won [a title], I wouldn’t necessarily said that she was the greatest of all time,” Nichols said Monday. “Breanna Stewart is a four-time [NCAA] champ, three-time Player of the Year. Candace Parker — two-time champ, two-time Player of the year. Diana Taurasi, three-time national champion. I would still put Cheryl Miller up against anyone. Reggie Miller will tell you, as a Hall of Famer, he is not the best basketball player in his own family.”