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Rebecca Lobo’s MVP Claim About Caitlin Clark Resurfaces Amid Rookie’s Special Season
Heading into the second half of the WNBA season, Indiana Fever star Caitlin Clark’s recent run of elite play has catapulted her from the Rookie of the Year race to MVP contention. Though Clark has had her share of critics in the past, one women’s basketball analyst saw her meteoric rise coming all along.
ESPN’s Rebecca Lobo posted about Clark’s potential ground-breaking rookie season in February, before the former Iowa standout was drafted. Clark, who was chasing the NCAA all-time leading scorer’s title at the time, was set to enter the 2024 WNBA draft in April as the projected No. 1 pick.
Lobo wrote on X (formerly known as Twitter) on Feb. 3, “If @CaitlinClark22 gets drafted to the @IndianaFever this summer, I believe she will put up MVP-caliber numbers as a rookie. While her opponents will be at a different skill level than in college, her teammates will be at another level as well. Her game translates.”
If @CaitlinClark22 gets drafted to the @IndianaFever this summer, I believe she will put up MVP-caliber numbers as a rookie. While her opponents will be at a different skill level than in college, her teammates will be at another level as well. Her game translates.
— Rebecca Lobo (@RebeccaLobo) February 4, 2024
Clark, who leads the WNBA with 8.3 assists per game, struggled early in her rookie campaign but built up her skills and confidence week after week. Her Olympic snub this past summer may have only fueled her motivation and desire to dominate the league. Clark is currently eyeing Connecticut Sun forward Alyssa Thomas’s all-time season assist record (316) and the Fever are inching closer to their first postseason appearance since 2016.
Despite Clark’s trail of historic feats this past year, most would agree the MVP honor currently belongs to Las Vegas Aces star A’ja Wilson, who has been putting up staggering numbers in her seventh season in the league.
Still, fans far and wide hailed Lobo for her prophetic take.
This aged like fine wine…..
— simpleSAM (@simplesamtx) August 23, 2024
Rebecca done knew!! Much respect
— Jerod Jones (@jones_jerod) August 23, 2024
🫡 👊🏾
Rebecca, your CC take aged like fine wine. She is projected number 2 in the MVP race. Keep the great analysis coming!
— Andy froemel (@FroemelAndy) August 23, 2024
A lot of people need to do some apologizing to @RebeccaLobo. Game knows game 👊
— Pleswalker (@Pleswalker99) August 23, 2024
Cooked
— AB (@_Xstussy_) August 23, 2024
— Kamala’s Panda (@oldmancoyote22) August 23, 2024
KRISTEN WONG
Kristen Wong is a staff writer on the Breaking and Trending News team at Sports Illustrated. She has been a sports journalist since 2020. Before joining SI in November 2023, Wong covered four NFL teams as an associate editor with the FanSided NFL Network and worked as a staff writer for the brand’s flagship site. Outside of work, she has dreams of running her own sporty dive bar.