Paige Bueckers offered her honest thoughts on Caitlin Clark’s ever-growing popularity. Bueckers, 23, knows all about the Indiana Fever’s quality on the court having endured numerous college and international basketball battles with her.
Clark, 22, has become one of the most popular athletes in the United States and recently penned a remarkable £21.5million ( $28m)deal with Nike. While not quite on the same scale as the Iowa native yet, Bueckers has also been causing a stir in women’s basketball.
I’m Caitlin Clark’s big rival – I know the secret to why she’s loved and it’s not her game
Caitlin Clark has become one of the most exciting athletes in sport and a rival of hers thinks she knows why
One of Caitlin Clark’s biggest rivals has offered her thoughts on her popularity (Image: Getty Images)
Paige Bueckers offered her honest thoughts on Caitlin Clark’s ever-growing popularity. Bueckers, 23, knows all about the Indiana Fever’s quality on the court having endured numerous college and international basketball battles with her.
Clark, 22, has become one of the most popular athletes in the United States and recently penned a remarkable £21.5million ( $28m)deal with Nike. While not quite on the same scale as the Iowa native yet, Bueckers has also been causing a stir in women’s basketball.
She is widely considered to be the closest rival to Clark, given her position, quality and the fact that she also stands at an imposing six-foot tall. While fans and the US sports media are trying to build up a rivalry between the two stars, Bueckers has nothing but respect and admiration for Clark.
In a recent interview, Bueckers said: “We’ve known each other for a very long time. We’ve been competing against and with each other for a very long time…I mean Caitlin’s a competitor, she’s a winner. She’s a great basketball player, everybody sees it.
She does so much for the game. And she’s the best scorer college basketball has ever seen. But I think she’s so much more than a scorer. I think the best thing about her is her competitive spirit and her fire, her passion, her joy for the game. Everybody loves watching it.
“She’s just a competitor. She wants to win. She has just intangibles of the game. She knows how to play, a great IQ. I think the biggest thing about her is she competes and she’s just a winner. She wants to win at all costs.”
While Clark boasts two Naismith Player of the Year titles, Bueckers made history as the first freshman to clinch the Wooden Award, Naismith Trophy, AP Player of the Year, and USBWA Player of the Year in 2021.
Caitlin Clark and Paige Bueckers look destined for many more battles in the WNBA (Image: Getty Images)
Next year will see Buecker be drafted to the WNBA, where she’ll go head-to-head with Clark. The WNBA Draft in April 2025 will reveal which team she’ll join.
When asked about Bueckers, Clark has previously said: “I think the coolest thing about Paige is how resilient she is. Obviously, she’s been kind of dealt a tough hand and only has positive things to say about her teammates. And the way she carries herself on and off the court and the way she works hard, none of that has changed.
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“Since I’ve known her since she was in middle school she’s always worked that same way, always had that fire and been a leader. I really honestly couldn’t be happier for her for the year she’s had and the way she’s led this team back to the Final Four when they’ve dealt a tough hand as a program.
“Her game is just so smooth, like she’s fun to watch. She moves effortlessly out there like it’s just so natural. It comes easy to her but that’s always been her game as long as I’ve known her. She’s just very naturally gifted and then she additionally works really hard at it and that makes a great recipe for success.”
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