As the WNBA playoffs begin today, Caitlin Clark’s impact on the Indiana Fever cannot be overstated. Her recent career-high 35-point outburst against the Dallas Wings, showcased her ability to elevate her game when it matters the most. This performance not only secured a crucial victory for the young team but added another feat for the rookie, leaving behind none other than Sheryl Swoopes for the most points in a game by a rookie. However, despite such performances, one of the NBA veterans is not ready to call her the most dominant player, and he has his reasons.

In the recent Episode of the “Gil’s Arena” podcast, Gilbert Arenas and Rashad McCants got into a fierce debate when the latter suggested that Clark’s dominance in her rookie year is the best. “When Jordan came in the game, right he was second or third in scoring in the league… Let’s just make it sense when Jordan came in average 28, his third year he averaged 35  then 37, those became dominant,” said Arenas in his podcast. McCants wanted to justify Clark’s dominance in the league by pointing out that she already leads in assists. Now let’s look at the numbers.

Clark’s meteoric rise as a rookie in the WNBA has been nothing but phenomenal. Why? In just 40 games, the 22-year-old point guard is averaging an impressive 19.2 PPG, 5.7 RPG, and 8.4 APG. Her sharpshooting ability, court vision, and clutch performances have not only earned her a devoted fanbase but have also drawn comparisons to some of the greatest players in the NBA, including Stephen Curry and LeBron James.

However, the point of the debate was that Arenas was adamant about not believing what McCants was saying. Then, he brought in Michael Jordan’s rookie stats to compare. So the question that arises is whether Clark is as dominant as Michael Jordan as per stats?

Unfortunately, no. Jordan in his rookie season with the Chicago Bulls in 1984-85, scored an average of 28.2 PPG, 6.5 RPG, and 5.9 APG. While it’s true that Clark is leading in terms of assists, a dominant player cannot be defined only on that particular stat line. Jordan’s numbers show a significant gap with the stats of the No. 22, indicating that he was more dominant than the young point guard making Arenas’ claims true. “Caitlin Clark is averaging 20. We all stop lying to yourself. We all said this is probably the worse her offense is going to be right,” said Arenas during the podcast.

As mentioned by Arenas before, Jordan made significant progress in his initial years, averaging 37 PPG and 35 PPG in his third and fourth years. Clark is still in the developing stage of the league and we can only expect her to get better with each season. In the playoffs, all eyes will be on the Des Moines native to see if she can continue her stellar play and lead the Fever to postseason success. However, when a discussion includes the name Caitlin Clark, it can’t happen that this other WNBA standout in her own league is not mentioned. So was the case with this podcast.

Sheryl Swoopes shares her kind words for A’ja Wilson during the podcast

In the latest episode of the “Gil’s Arena” podcast, the 4x WNBA champion, Sheryl Swoopes, was invited as the guest host. During the podcast, she expressed her admiration for A’ja Wilson for her exceptional talent and leadership qualities. “I was very blessed to play with some incredible talented players. Played against some of the best… A’ja is on a whole another level. A’ja’s doing stuff that’s never been done in this league before,” stated Swoopes who was wearing Wilson’s No. 22 jersey. But why did she say this?

A’ja Wilson has been unanimously voted as this season’s Most Valuable Player, as per the league’s Sunday announcement. Interestingly, this is Wilson’s third MVP award, as she has already won it in 2020 and 2022. Another incredible fact about this feat is that she is the first unanimous winner since the Houston Comet’s Cynthia Cooper won in 1997.

She has also set a record for scoring one thousand points in a single WNBA season, being the first player to do so. Her triumphs on the basketball court and her advocacy of social justice issues have made her an icon in basketball circles.