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ESPN's Monica McNutt Changes Caitlin Clark Track Record With Prediction

ESPN analyst Monica McNutt got honest about what she expects to see from Caitlin Clark next after a sub-par performance from the rookie on Sunday.

Grant Young

Jul 12, 2023; Los Angeles, CA, USA; ESPN analyst Monica McNutt arrives on the red carpet before the 2023 ESPYS at the Dolby Theatre. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images
Jul 12, 2023; Los Angeles, CA, USA; ESPN analyst Monica McNutt arrives on the red carpet before the 2023 ESPYS at the Dolby Theatre. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images / Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

ESPN analyst Monica McNutt hasn't always been the most forthcoming with her praise regarding Indiana Fever rookie Caitlin Clark.

This began publicly back in July when McNutt selected Angel Reese over Clark for WNBA Rookie of the Year. Her criteria for choosing Reese over Clark was that the Sky had a better record (which, of course, has since turned in Clark's favor).

Shannon Sharpe — who is about as unabashed of a Clark supporter as there is in sports media right now — appeared to call McNutt out for that take earlier this month.

While McNutt didn't address Sharpe's comments directly, she did offer some praise of Clark and the Fever about a week after Sharpe's critique of her and fellow ESPN analyst Carolyn Peck went viral.

And McNutt added on to the positive opinion of Clark during an ESPN 'NBA Today' segment that aired on Monday.

"You've got to understand that the Connecticut Sun have been a top-three, if not the number one, defensive team in the WNBA consistently for four out of the last five seasons," McNutt said when discussing Clark's playoffs debut, per @espnW on X.

"Mind you... DiJonai Carrington is in the running for the Defensive Player of the Year as a guard, and she didn't even start with the primary assignment. It was DeWanna Bonner with that tremendous length. [Sun coach] Stephanie White and those guys cooked up a scheme that was designed to cut the Fever off at their head, and their head is Caitlin Clark," McNutt continued.

"Now, Caitlin has a track record of when she has low-scoring games, which we haven't seen many of, she bounces back with +25 point performances," McNutt added.

It's cool to hear McNutt predict this bounce-back performance from Clark on Wednesday.

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Grant Young

GRANT YOUNG

Grant Young covers Women’s Basketball, the New York Yankees, and the New York Mets for Sports Illustrated’s ‘On SI’ sites. He holds an MFA degree in creative writing from the University of San Francisco (USF), where he also graduated with a Bachelor’s Degree in Marketing and played on USF’s Division I baseball team for five years. However, he now prefers Angel Reese to Angels in the Outfield.

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