PHOENIX — Caitlin Clark is a versatile basketball player, but her ability to knock down shots from what sometimes feels like the third row of the stands is arguably what she is most known for.
As a rookie this season, Clark is tied for third in the WNBA with 71 made 3-pointers. So when the field was announced for Friday’s WNBA 3-Point Contest, not having Clark on the list of players competing was a bit shocking.
The Indiana Fever guard spoke to the media at Friday’s All-Star Weekend availability and addressed her decision to sit out the contest.
“I think just rest,” Clark said. “… I’ve been playing basketball for a year straight. It’s not an easy thing to just show up to and shoot off of a rack. It’s not something I’ve ever done before. It’s not something I’ve had a lot of time to practice. I’ve been focusing on helping my team win games.”
Clark did hint at future participation in the event, saying, “There’s going to be plenty of opportunities for me to do that at some point.”
New York Liberty guard Sabrina Ionescu, the 2023 champion and the record-holder in the event, also opted to skip it this year. Phoenix Mercury stars Kahleah Copper and Diana Taurasi would have been logical candidates to participate with All-Star Weekend taking place in Phoenix. However, neither decided to take part.
“I’ve done the 3-Point Contest a couple times and, you know, I was good,” Taurasi told reporters on Friday.
Copper, a first-time Olympian, said her packed schedule was why she decided to skip the contest. However, she did not rule it out in the future.
Taurasi and Copper were asked whether they would have participated if they had known that Aflac would give $55,000 to the winners of both the Skills Challenge and the 3-Point Contest for the first time this year.
Neither player confirmed whether the figure would have changed their minds. But both acknowledged that $55,000 is “a lot of money.”
The five players who will compete in the 3-Point Contest are Liberty center Jonquel Jones, Washington Mystics center Stefanie Dolson, Minnesota Lynx guard Kayla McBride, Atlanta Dream guard Allisha Gray and Connecticut Sun guard Marina Mabrey. McBride leads the WNBA with 76 3-pointers this season, while Dolson is shooting 48.5% from behind the arc, tops among players who have attempted at least 40 3-pointers.
Order ‘Rare Gems’ and save 30%
Howard Megdal, founder and editor of The IX Basketball and The IX Sports, wrote this deeply reported book. “Rare Gems” follows four connected generations of women’s basketball pioneers, from Elvera “Peps” Neuman to Cheryl Reeve and from Lindsay Whalen to Sylvia Fowles and Paige Bueckers.
If you enjoy Megdal’s coverage of women’s basketball every Wednesday at The IX Sports, you will love “Rare Gems: How Four Generations of Women Paved the Way for the WNBA.” Click the link below to order and enter MEGDAL30 at checkout to save 30%!