Fever coach Christy Sides called for more offense from star rookie Caitlin Clark, who had another lackluster performance in Thursday’s loss.
“Kaitlyn Clark has to take at least 15 shots a game for us,” Said said after Clark took just nine shots in an 89-77 loss to the Storm. Via ESPN“She’s got to make the shots, and we’ve got to set her up well and set really good screens so she can get open.”
Clark had a strong rookie season with the Fever, averaging 16.2 points and 6.6 assists per game while averaging 12.2 field goals per game.
Sides noted that Clark has been physically guarded all season, but he sees a way for the Fever to win more games by giving Clark more of the ball as the lead offensive player.
Clark’s 12.2 field goal attempts per game are 22nd in the WNBA this year and the most among rookies.
But after taking 15 shots four times in May, she has only taken 15 shots once in 10 games since then.
Clark averaged 22.7 shots per game in his final season at Iowa.
“She’s tough to guard,” Sides said. “When the ball leaves her hand, she creates great opportunities for the rest of the team. She has a pretty good chance.” [for herself] “When I don’t have the ball I do that. But when I have the ball I do that. So I’ve got to figure out how to control those two things.”
In the past two games, Clark clearly hasn’t been as aggressive as Sides would have liked.
Clark took nine shots in Thursday’s loss, but three Fever players took more shots than the star rookie.
Fellow guard Kelsey Mitchell is averaging 13.4 shots per game, the most on the team.
In an 88-87 loss to the Angel Reese Sky on June 23, Clark took just one shot in the final seven minutes and three total shots in the fourth quarter as the Fever blew a 15-point third-quarter lead.
Clark passed the ball to a teammate instead of taking a game-winning shot with 20 seconds left.
“I never want her to not be aggressive with her shots,” Sides said after the loss. “After she missed the free throw, when she went out in transition, I really thought she was going to take a shot at the rim or pull up right there. That would have been a great shot for her and for the team.”
Clark acknowledged Thursday that he could be looking to score more frequently.
“I can definitely be a little more aggressive to the basket,” Clark told ESPN, “but I’m also going to try to take advantage of what the defense is giving me and help my teammates be successful.”
